Love is so Poisonous
by AudreyDarke96
Summary: It's been months since Stefan left and Damon, Audrey, and Elena haven't stopped looking since. With Klaus's hybrid mission failing at every move he is getting angrier every moment. Damon/OC. Read and Review please.
1. The Birthday

_**Edited on 2/25/12**_

**Chapter One- The Birthday**

_I saw a blond woman walk outside her house into the darkness of the night._

"_Rudy!" she yelled before whistling, " Rudy, come on. It's too hot to make me come look for you."_

_She bent down to pick up something off the ground and when she stood up she saw Klaus_

"_I'm sorry." he said, without his usual accent, " I didn't mean to scare you."_

"_Can I help you?" the woman asked him_

"_Yeah, my car ran out of gas a few miles back." he said, " I feel like I've been walking forever, yours is the first house I came to so I was hoping I could use your phone?"_

" _Sure." she said_

"_So, can I come in?" Klaus asked_

"_No, I'll get the phone and I will bring it out to you."_

" _I thought you county folk were supposed to be more trusting." Klaus said, his accent returning._

"_I'm from Florida." she informed him_

"_Well that explains it." he said before grabbing the girl by the neck and starting to compel her, "Now show me a little southern hospitality. Sweet pea."_

_Then the scene shifted and I saw a woman cooking in a kitchen._

"_I bet you a hundred dollars that dog ran out to a house with air conditioning." she said before turning around and seeing Klaus holding the other woman by here hair._

"_What's going on?" the second woman said_

"_Please don't be alarmed." Klaus told her, " I was told Ray Sutton lives here."_

"_He's almost never here." the second woman replied, " He's on the road mostly."_

"_But I expect he makes it home, once a month." the woman didn't say a word, " That's what I thought. Where is he now?" Neither of the women said anything, "If I have to make you tell me it's going to be evidently more painful for you."_

_Then the girl ran but when she opened the front door Stefan was standing there._

"_I love it when they run." Klaus said walking up to them_

"_He's in Tolly, it's near the boarder." she exclaimed, " A bar called Southern Comfort_

_It's on highway 41."_

"_Thank you, love." Klaus said before turning to the blonde woman, " Now, may my friend come in?"_

"_Yes." the blond_

_Stefan walked into the house and Klaus pushed the blonde girl into his arms._

"_Kill that one quickly." he said before turning to the second one, " And make the other one suffer. I'll be in the car"_

"_Please don't." the blond girl said before Stefan bit her in the neck and the two girls started screaming._

_Outside Klaus smiled as he continued to walk to the car._

I gasped and sat up in my bed, waking up from my nightmare.

* * *

><p>After I had gotten dressed in my purple tank top and black jean shorts my phone started ringing.<p>

"Hello." I answered tiredly

"Hey." Care replied in her usual chipper voice

"What are you doing?" I asked her

"Just shopping for the party you're trying to bail out on."

"I'm not the only one trying to bail out on it." I said, walking down the stairs, " It's Elena's birthday. Focus on her."

"Since I missed your birthday I have to make it up."

"Who told you that?" I asked

"I'm not telling." she said in a sing song voice

"Well, I don't remember agreeing to come anyway." I said

" You were never going to." she said, " Which is why I planned it anyway. And my mom want's you or Elena to call her."

"Did she find something?" I asked as I saw Elena walk into the kitchen, " Elena just walked in, let me put you on speaker." I set the phone on the counter and put it on speaker, "Continue."

"An animal attack in Memphis, It's the third one this weekend in Tennessee."

" And you're sure it's a vampire?" Elena asked her hopefully

I looked over at Ric to see him struggling with the coffee machine. I walked over to him and helped him out.

"Yes, but it doesn't mean that it's Klaus." Care replied

"Doesn't mean it's not." Elena countered, "I'll call her."

"Well call her on her cell." Care told her

"Tell her thank you for her help." Elena said

"Alright. Why I gotta go. I'll see you in a bit"

"Wait, Care." I said, " Just keep it small tonight. Please."

" Make sure you two wear something pretty." Then she hung up.

" Was that Stefan news?" Ric asked making his bed on the couch

"Could be more Klaus victims." Elena suggested

I didn't mention anything about my vision to Elena because I didn't want to upset her.

"You certain Stefan's still with him?" Alaric asked

"Easy to be certain when the alternative is that he's dead. Are you sure you're still okay on the couch?" Elena asked him

"Yeah, Yeah, I'm good."

"Because you spent half the summer on it." I said, " If you need your own bedroom…"

"Sleeping in Elena's dead parent's room or my dead ex-girlfriends room. Nah."

"I guess you have a point." I said

"Hey, Elena." Ric said

"What?" Elena asked turning towards us

"Happy birthday."

"Thanks." she said

* * *

><p>After Elena had called Liz she wrote down the address the attack had happened and I told her I would take it to Damon. When I got to the boarding house I walked in and up to Damon's room.<p>

"Good morning." Damon said from behind

"Hey I was gonna…" I started as I turned around to see a completely naked Damon, " Oh!" I turned back around quickly, " You heard me. You knew I was here."

"Yeah, You should really learn to knock." Damon told me and I could hear the smirk that must have been on his face, " What if I were…indecent."

I found a towel and grabbed it before throwing it behind me to Damon. I put a hand over my eyes before turning around. I slowly moved my hand to see Damon had covered himself with the towel.

"Sheriff Forbes gave us another location." I said, " In Memphis."

"Another dead end you mean." he said

"Give your dead end crap to , Elena." I snapped, " I know you've been tracking him since he left. Trust me, you should check this place out. I had a vision last night of Stefan and Klaus and Stefan is not looking so good."

I handed the piece of paper to Damon.

"When you and Ric go and check this place out, I'm coming with you."

"And risk Klaus finding out your alive? No way." Damon told me

"The thing is I already know where this place is so you can take me and make sure I'm safe or I can go by myself."

He thought about it for a moment before saying, " Fine. I'll pick you and Ric up later."

" See you then." I said before walking out of the house.

* * *

><p>A few hours later we pulled up in front of the house I had seen in my vision. Damon's phone started ringing but he ignored it.<p>

"Elena?" Ric asked as we got out of the car

Damon nodded.

" I don't know why you just don't come clean and tell her where we are." Ric said

"Because Andie said this was a half lead and I don't want her to get her hopes up."

"Yeah, well there all half leads, and I'm you're accomplice. What do you want me to say to her, I'm practically living there."

"This isn't a half lead." I said, " Stefan and Klaus we're here."

"You know this how?" Ric asked

" I had a vision of this house last night." I informed him, " It's quiet."

"Yeah." Damon agreed, " Too quiet."

We walked up to the house Damon put his hand through the door before walking in with Ric and I right behind him. We walked down the hallway I had seen last night and there was blood everywhere. When we walked into the living room the bodies of the two girls were sitting on the couch.

"Oh, my God." I whispered

"Vampires for sure." Ric said

"Stefan for sure." Damon corrected him

"How do you know?"

"Well, Audrey's vision and the fact that it's his signature; it's a reason they call him 'the ripper. Feeds so hard he blacks out and rips them apart, but then when he's done, he feels remorse. That's the thing ," Then he kicked one of the blond girls leg and her head fell of and rolled onto the ground "he put the bodies back together."

" Back together." I repeated with disgust

"Definitely Stefan."

* * *

><p>"What are you doing?" Ric asked as Damon came back with a tank of gasoline<p>

"Covering their tracks." he said, " Obviously they have no intention of staying in the dark but I do."

I stepped back to get out of Damon's way and heard the floor creak underneath me. I looked up at Ric and Damon before bending down and moving the rug I was standing on to reveal a trap door of some sort. Damon stopped pouring gas and came over to where I was crouching. Ric opened the hatch and below was a cellar with a bunch of chains.

"Well, what do you know." Damon said, " Werewolves."

Ric closed the hatch and he and I walked out of the room as Damon lit a match and started the bodies on fire.

* * *

><p>I was sitting in Stefan's bed , after I had changed into my black cocktail dress, keeping Elena company.<p>

"Here." I said handing her a box, "Happy birthday."

"What is it?" she asked before opening the box. "My necklace, I thought this was gone forever."

"Ric found it in his apartment." I explained, " I thought you might want it since it's actually the real deal and mine was some cheap knock off."

"Thank you." she said

"You are welcome."

She turned back to the mirror and said, " I'm not gonna lose it. At least until the cake."

"I didn't say you were." then I saw that she was talking to Damon, " Hey."

"It's your party you can cry if you want." he said walking into the room, " Ah, Stefan, such a pack rat."

I got up off the bed and straitened out my dress.

"I'll be downstairs." Elena said looking between Damon and I

"See you in a bit." I told her as she left the room

"I got you something." Damon said, " I know I told you I wouldn't buy you anything so I didn't pay for it."

"You stole it?" I asked as he pulled out a black box

"No." he said opening it, " I own it."

Inside was the most beautiful necklace I had ever seen, it was silver with a sapphire in the middle and one hanging off the bottom.

"It's beautiful." I said taking it out of the box

"It belonged to my mother." he told me with a smile, " She gave it to me before she died and said to give it to someone special"

I looked up at him and smiled.

"Thank you." I said

"You're welcome."

"Can you…" I started holding the necklace out to him

"Absolutely." he said taking it

I turned around and Damon put the necklace around my neck and secured it. I turned back around and Damon put his arm out.

"Shall we?"

I linked arms with him and we made our way out of Stefan's room were Elena was leaning against the wall.

"Care to join us?" I asked

"Sure." she said grabbing hold of Damon's other arm and we continued down the stairs and into the party.

We walked into the living room and it was full of people.

"I'm gonna kill her." I said to no one in particular

A girl was about to walk past us when Damon grabbed the bottle in her hand and stopped her.

"Hey." he said compelling her, " You don't want that. You want the cheap young stuff next to the cheap young people."

The girl nodded before walking away.

"You like?" Caroline said coming up to us, she saw our expressions then added, " Don't answer that."

"This is keeping it small?" Elena asked

"I am NEVER coming to a big party." I said, making Caroline laugh

"What are we drinking?" Elena said making Care laugh

"Sell out." I yelled after her before turning to Damon, " I'm going to find Aurora."

Then I walked off into the crowed.

* * *

><p>I found Aurora and Jace after a few minutes.<p>

"Jace, long time no see buddy." I said, " How's life?"

"Amazing now that I have my girl back." he said before kissing Aurora

"Mind if I hang out with you guys for a bit?"

"Why would we mind?" Aurora said, " We should sing."

"Are you drunk?" I asked

"No?" she asked me

" You got into Damon's stash didn't you?"

"Maybe."

"I can't believe you." I said, shaking my head, " And I refuse to sing."

"Why, you're such a good singer." she said drunkenly

"Um… there's not a mic." I said, trying to get her off my case

"If there's a mic, will you sing?" she asked

"Sure." I said

She smiled before walking off leaving me with Jace.

"I would be very scared if I were you." he told me

"And why is that?" I asked

"That was her determined face."

* * *

><p>Five minutes later I saw Aurora standing on a table with a mic in her hand.<p>

"Excuse me." she said and everyone became quiet

"I can't believe it." I said, " Where didn't she find a microphone in five minutes?"

"My friend Audrey is going to sing for us." she continued before looking over at me, "Isn't that right?"

Everyone turned towards me.

" I would but I don't have and music." I said, coming up with any excuse to get myself out of this

"That's okay. I have the karaoke version of Domino on my Ipod." she said, " Come on. Sing. Sing. Sing."

" Sing! Sing! Sing!" Everyone started chanting

I walked over to Aurora and she helped he onto the table and everyone cheered.

"I will get you back for this." I whispered to her

"Have fun." she said, handing me the mic and getting off the table

She headed over to the stereo and turned on the music.

_I'm feeling sexy and free  
><em>_Like glitter's raining on me  
><em>_You're like a shot of pure gold  
><em>_I think I'm 'bout to explode  
><em>_I can taste the tension like a cloud of smoke in the air  
><em>_Now I'm breathing like I'm running cause you're taking me there  
><em>_Don't you know...you spin me out of control_

As I was looking at the crowd I spot Damon gaping up at me and I smiled as I continued to sing

_Ooh ooh ooh ooh  
><em>_We can do this all night  
><em>_D*mn this love's skin tight  
><em>_Baby come on  
>Ooh ooh ooh ooh<br>__Pull me like a bass drum  
><em>_Sparkin' up a rhythm  
><em>_Baby, come on!__Ooh ooh ooh ooh_

_Rock my world into the sunlight  
><em>_Make this dream the best I've ever known  
><em>_Dirty dancing in the moonlight  
><em>_Take me down like I'm a domino  
><em>_Every second is a highlight  
><em>_When we touch don't ever let me go  
><em>_Dirty dancing in the moonlight  
><em>_Take me down like I'm a domino_

_You got me losing my mind  
>My heart beats out of time<br>__I'm seeing Hollywood stars  
><em>_You strum me like a guitar  
><em>_I can taste the tension like a cloud of smoke in the air  
><em>_Now I'm breathing like I'm running cause you're taking me there  
><em>_Don't you know...you spin me out of control_

Then I jumped off of the table and headed into the crowd. I quickly found Matt and started dancing with him and he joined me albeit reluctantly.

_Ooh ooh ooh ooh  
><em>_We can do this all night  
><em>_D*mn this love's skin tight  
><em>_Baby come on  
><em>_Ooh ooh ooh ooh  
><em>_Pull me like a bass drum  
><em>_Sparkin' up a rhythm  
><em>_baby, come on!__Ooh ooh ooh ooh_

_Rock my world into the sunlight  
><em>_Make this dream the best I've ever known  
><em>_Dirty dancing in the moonlight  
><em>_Take me down like I'm a domino  
><em>_Every second is a highlight  
><em>_When we touch don't ever let me go  
><em>_Dirty dancing in the moonlight  
><em>_Take me down like I'm a domino_

I laughed at Matt's reluctance before continuing into the crowd and finally stopping in front of Damon.

_Ooh baby baby got me feeling so right  
><em>_Ooh baby baby dancing in the moonlight_

_Ooh baby baby got me feeling so right  
>Ooh baby baby dancing in the moonlight<br>Ooh baby baby got me feeling so right  
>Ooh baby baby dancing in the moonlight<em>

_Rock my world into the sunlight  
>Make this dream the best I've ever known<br>Dirty dancing in the moonlight  
>Take me down like I'm a domino<br>Every second is a highlight  
>When we touch don't ever let me go<br>Dirty dancing in the moonlight  
>Take me down like I'm a domino <em>

When I was done I turned away from a still staring Damon and the crowd cheered. " Thank you." I said with a smile before heading off to find Elena.

* * *

><p>I found Elena walking out of the study and she seemed angry.<p>

"What happened to you?" I asked

"Jeremy's smoking again." she told me, " I was on my way out to talk to Ric about talking to him."

"I got it." I said told her, " You go and enjoy your party."

"Thanks." she said, " Nice singing by the way."

"Thanks you for that." I said heading to the porch were I found Damon and Ric.

"Drink." I said, holding out my hand to Damon and grabbing his glass, " Jeremy's smoking again." I said before taking a sip and turning to Ric, " Talk to him, please. He looks up to you."

I gave Damon his drink back before heading back into the house.

* * *

><p>I walked into Damon's room after an hour, looking for him.<p>

"Damon?" I asked

I sighed when there was no response. I turned around and came face to face with Stefan.

"Stefan." I said, backing away from him, " What are you doing here?"

"Trying to send Damon a message." he replied, " And I thought you could help me with that."

Then he grabbed me.

* * *

><p>Stefan had brought me to the channel nine news station and tried to compel me to be quiet before handing me over to some compelled man. I did as he said so he didn't hurt me. After twenty minutes Damon walked in.<p>

"Stefan." he said

"Hello brother." Stefan said

"You don't write , you don't call…"

"I need you to stop following me." Stefan told him, " You're causing some problems."

"With who?" Damon asked, " Klaus? I'm supposed to care what he thinks?"

"What you're supposed to do is let me go."

"Saw you're latest artwork in Tennessee. Walking a fine line there my friend. Keep that up and there will be no saving you."

"See the thing is I don't need any saving. I just want you to let me go." Stefan told him

"Nah, I got a birthday girl at home that's not gonna let me do that."

"You know, maybe I haven't made my point." Stefan said, "Hey, Andie, Audrey, you two still there?"

"What?" Damon said

I was brought out by the guy that was holding me and I tried to get free but he was to strong.

"Damon." Andie said, " I can't move. He told me I couldn't move."

"No, no, no. It's gonna be okay." Damon said to us before turning to Stefan, " Not cool brother."

"Oh, come on." Stefan insisted, "It's a little cool. No?"

" Hey Andie, you can move know." Stefan started before turning over to me, " Jacobi, you know what to do."

Suddenly I was slammed against the wall by my throat. Jacobi continued to choke me as I was lifted a few feet off the ground.

"No." I heard Damon say as Andie walked forward and Jacobi continued choking me, " No, no, no."

Then Stefan held him against the wall as Andie fell to her death. I tried to escape Jacobi's grasp by kicking and clawing but nothing worked, plus I was starting to get lightheaded from the lack of air.

" I said, let me go." Stefan yelled to Damon

Stefan let go of him and disappeared. I felt myself slipping into unconsciousness when I heard a sickening snap and felt Jacobi let go of me as I fell to my knees, gasping for air

"Thanks." I choked out when I could talk

"You're welcome." he said, helping me up and putting an arm around my waist before we both looked over to see Andie's lifeless body

* * *

><p>Damon and I walked into his room to see a very angry Elena holding up papers.<p>

" What?" Damon asked, " What are you doing in here?"

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, " Why did you keep it a secret?"

"Can we not do this right know?" I said, rubbing my throat " We're having a really bad night."

" All summer, every time I came to either of you with a lead you made me feel like an idiot for having hope."

"You were an idiot." Damon told her

"Damon…" I started

"We all we're." he continued

"Tell me what you know, Damon." Elena said

" I know you need to get back to you're party Elena." he said walking past her

I walked past both of them and sitting down on Damon's bed.

"We're all supposed to be in this together." Elena said, " Why didn't you tell me you've been tracking Klaus's victims."

"Because they aren't Klaus's victims, Elena." Damon snapped, "They're Stefan's."

"What?" Elena asked

"He's left a trail of bodies up and down the eastern seaboard." Damon told her

"No." Elena said, "You're wrong."

"Elena, he's telling the truth." I said

"I've seen it before." Damon explained, " He's flipped the switch. Full blown ripper mode."

"Stop it, Damon." Elena said

"No, you stop it, Elena. Stop looking for him, stop waiting for him to come home, just stop." Damon snapped, " Stefan is gone and he's not coming back, not in your life time."

Then he walked out of the room and Elena looked as if she were about to cry. I got up of the bed and wrapped my arms around her.

"Everything's going to be okay, Elena."

"I need to get him back, Audrey." she said through tears

"I'll help you get him back." I promised her, " No matter what."

* * *

><p>Elena and I walked into the house to see Ric putting his things into a bag.<p>

"What are you doing?" I asked him

"I'm not gonna stay here anymore." he said, turning to us

"What?" Elena asked, " Why?"

"I'm not a role model." he said, " I drink to much, I say the wrong thing, I encourage bad behavior. At school I can pull it together but in my own life…The way I miss Jenna, it's just, I'm really not any good to anybody right now. I'm sorry, you two . You're both 18. You can do all this alone now. You can do it better without me."

He grabbed his bags and headed out the door, leaving Elena and I standing there by ourselves.


	2. The Hybrid

_**Edited on 2/25/12**_

**Chapter Two-The Hybrid**

You two just can't stay away, can you?" Damon asked as Elena and I walked into his room

"Nope." I said

"You've been dodging my calls." Elena said

"Well, busy day." he explained, " Dead fake girlfriend and all."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Elena asked

"Happy birthday, Elena. Stefan killed Andie and almost killed Audrey. Cake?"

"He called me, Damon." Elena said

"He did what now?" I asked her

"What did he say?" Damon asked curiously

"He didn't say anything, but it was him. I asked sheriff Forbes if she would trace the call's origin. It came from Tennessee." Elena said

"Where he's binge drinking on the country folk." I added

"We went through this, Elena." Damon said, " Stefan's gone. And I don't mean geographically.

"If he was gone he wouldn't have called me." Elena argued before walking out of the room

"I'm sorry about Andie, Damon." I told him before following Elena

* * *

><p>"This is a bad idea." I told Elena as we walked up to Ric's apartment<p>

"I need to find Stefan and Damon is obviously not going to help me." Elena said, " You could have left at anytime."

"And leave you alone to get yourself killed

When we got to Ric's door Elena knocked politely.

"Move over." I said before cop knocking on the door.

"Go away, Damon." Ric yelled from behind the door

I continued to knock until Ric opened the door.

"Hi." Elena greeted to the shirtless Ric

"You're not who I expected." he said

"We can see that." I smirked

"I need you to tell me everything you know about Stefan and Tennessee." Elena told him

"Did you miss the part where I checked out of all of this?" Alaric asked moving away from the door.

"Come on Ric." Elena said, walking into the apartment after him, " Whatever Damon knows, you know."

"He tells you more than he tells me." I said walking in after Elena and closing the door

"Ask Damon." he told us, putting on a shirt

" Yeah, but Damon's not exactly in the mood to help right now." Elena explained as she picked up some of the beer bottles that were strewn across the room.

"For good reason. Because it's not safe for either of you. Stefan's off the rails." Ric told her

"Yeah, but he's still holding on to his humanity, which means he can still be saved ." Elena argued

"Trying to kill me is definitely holding on to his humanity." I said sarcastically, leaning on the closed door

" And why do you have to be the one to save him?" Ric asked, ignoring me

"Because I'm not the kind of person who checks out." Elena retorted, "Look, he would never give up on me. I'm not gonna give up on him. Tell me what you know, Ric. Please."

"They've been tracking werewolves, he and Klaus. All over the eastern seaboard. We thought we had 'em just outside of Memphis…"

"We were ever so close."

"We?" Elena asked me

"Yeah, I went to but you never asked me about Tennessee." I said

"Continue Ric." Elena said, turning back to him

* * *

><p>We got to the Grill and we all went our separate ways. Elena to talk to Tyler about werewolves in Tennessee, Alaric to the bar, and me to talk Jer.<p>

"Hey Jer." I said

"Hey Audrey."

"Are you still seeing Anna and Vickie?" I asked him

Over the summer I had become aware that the ghosts of Vickie and Anna were haunting my cousin. I walked in to Jer's room one day and saw Anna standing next to him. Seeing as I was there when Anna had died it confused me at first but Jeremy explained that when he was brought back to life by Bonnie there had been consequences and made me promise not to tell anyone that they were around. Of course being the awesome cousin I am I promised.

"Yeah." he replied solemnly

"I'm sure it won't be forever." I assured him

I saw Elena making her way over to Ric at the bar.

"Listen, Jer." I started, " I gotta go but if you ever need to talk I'm here for you."

"Got it." he said with a smile

"Good." I said, smiling back "I'll talk to you later."

I walked over to Elena and Ric and asked, " What did you find?"

"How do you to feel about a little hike through the Smoky Mountains?" Elena asked us

"You want to hunt down a pack of werewolves on a full moon?" Ric asked her

"You want me to exercise?" I asked her warily

"Well be out of there before the moon is full." Elena replied, " If you guys don't come with, I'm going by myself."

"Fine, I'll go with." I told her

Ric gave us a 'are you insane?' look.

"What?" Elena said, " You're the one who said we could handle things on our own."

"Yea, I meant like frozen dinners and SATs." Ric explained, "A-all right fine. Let's just... Let's just go. But, uh, you're driving."

Then we headed out to Ric's car.

* * *

><p>"In a couple hours, the full moon's gonna rise just above that Ridge." Ric said pointing to a ridge a few miles away, " If Tyler's right, that's where the pack will be."<p>

"You were a boy scout weren't you?" I asked him with a laugh

"Shut up."

"A boy scout slash vampire hunter." Elena said

"Slash whiskey-drinking all-around lost cause." Ric added before stopping and setting down his bag and opening it up revealing all his weapons.

"Wow." Elena exclaimed, " You came stocked."

"Well, we aren't exactly bird-watching. Here. Put that in your bag." he said handing both of us a grenade

"Vervain grenade?" Elena asked

"Wolfsbane." he corrected

"Well, since we're exchanging gifts…" Elena started holding out Johns ring

"That's John Gilberts ring."

"It was you're ring once." Elena reminded him, " Take it. I'll protect you from whatever supernatural danger we're about to get ourselves into."

"He gave it to you."

"Yeah." she said, " But I'm a doppelganger. It's not gonna work on me. He left it for if I ever have kids."

"Yeah, well, then why don't you save it for future generations of stubborn, relentless baby Gilberts?" Ric asked her

"God save us all when they come around."

"Ok, and how 'bout you borrow it until after we survive this?" Elena tried to convince him

"Yeah, I'd feel bad if I got you killed before happy hour." I added before walking over to the edge of the bluff and looking at the lake and setting down my bag, "I don't know why you think that you're a lost cause."

Before I could say anything else I was flying. I gasped as I hit the water. When I came up I saw Damon standing in the spot I had been in.

"Damon?" I asked confused, "How are you even here?"

"Thanks for the tip, brother." he said, turning to Ric

"You sold us out?" Elena asked Ric

"You think I'd take you two into a mountain range of werewolves without backup?"

* * *

><p>"Get out of the water, Audrey." Damon told me angrily after Elena had walked away from us<p>

"If I get out of the water you're gonna make me go home." I said

"Yes. Because I'm not an idiot like you."

"Right now your both acting like idiots." Ric said

"You gave up on him Damon." I told him , shaking my head

"I didn't give up on him, Audrey. I faced reality." he replied, "Now get out of the water."

"No!" I responded

"What's your big plan, Audrey? Huh? You gonna walk into a campsite full of werewolves, roast a marshmallow, and wait for Stefan to stop by?" He asked, joining me in the water

"Well, I thought I would make some S'mores while Elena found and helped Stefan." I said sarcastically, "Damon, this is the closest we've been all summer .I'm not going home."

"Klaus thinks you and Elena died when he broke the curse. That makes you both safe. This, he said looking around the woods, " this is not safe."

"I'm not leaving until I help Elena get him back."

"It's a full moon tonight, Audrey." Damon informed me

"Then we'll find him before then." I said, getting closer to him, " Damon, please."

He thought about it for a moment and I saw him slowly giving in.

"Okay. Okay. But we are out of here before the moon is full and I'm werewolf bait."

" I promise." I said

"Unless you wanna relive that whole deathbed kissy thing." he continued

"I said I promise." I repeated

"Fine." he said turning and walking out of the water

* * *

><p>"How are you doing?" Damon asked me as the four of us walked through the mountain<p>

"I'm fine." I replied

"You know, I could help you." he suggested

" No, thanks."

" Just one little fwoosh…"

" Yeah, with my luck, you'd drop me." I told him

" What are you guys, 12?" Elena asked us

We continued walking up the mountain but I had this weird feeling that someone was watching us but when I looked around no one was around.

* * *

><p>"We got about a mile left." Ric informed us as the sun started to set<p>

"The sun's about to set." Damon said

" We can see that, Damon" I said

" I'm just saying ."

"The moon doesn't reach its apex for a while." Elena said, "We have time."

Then we all heard twigs breaking and a man covered in blood stumbled into the clearing.

" Stay where you are." Ric said aiming his crossbow at him

" Vampire." the man said before charging at Damon.

He held Damon up against a tree and Ric shot him in the back with an arrow but it didn't stop him.

"Damon!" I yelled before throwing a wolfs bane grenade into his hand. It exploded and the dude screamed and fell away from Damon. Damon kicked him in the stomach leaving him unconscious.

" Let me guess." Ric said, " Hybrid."

* * *

><p>Damon and Alaric were tying the guy to a tree.<p>

" These ropes aren't gonna hold him much longer." Damon said, " What else do we have?"

I doused some ropes with vervain.

"Ric, here." I said, "Take these ."

Damon grabbed the ropes and his skin burned.

" Aah! Ow!" he exclaimed

" I said Ric." I told him, trying my hardest not to laugh

Then Ric grabbed the ropes and put them around the hybrid.

"All right, that's the last of the vervain." Ric said, backing away " We don't have enough stuff to hold him. I don't think we're gonna make that ridge before the full moon ."

" If we can get him to talk, we don't have to." Elena said walking closer to the unconscious man

He screamed and started to transform.

" Is he turning?" Damon asked

"It's impossible." Elena muttered, " It's still daylight ."

" Tell him that ." Ric said

Damon walked up to the man and grabbed his shoulders holding him back.

" There aren't supposed to be werewolves out here until the moon is full." I said,

" You know, those ropes aren't gonna hold the wolf ." Ric told us

The man snarled and tried to bite Damon again.

"Damon, we've got to get out of here." I said,, walking up to him "We gotta get out of these mountains now! Damon, now!"

* * *

><p>We had been running for awhile, it was now dark and I was falling behind when I tripped over a rock and fell.<p>

"Don't move." I heard Damon say

I looked up slowly and gasped when I noticed I had come face to face with a wolf that was a foot in front of me.

"Here doggie, doggie." Damon said, getting the attention of the wolf and then running off at vampire speed into the woods with the wolf right running after him.

"Come on. Let's keep moving." Ric said as I got up

"We can't leave Damon!" I shouted

"He can handle himself." Elena said, " Let's move."

" No. If he gets bitten , he'll be dead." I reminded them, " I'm the reason he's out here."

I was about to go after him when Ric grabbed my arm.

" I am the reason he's out here." Ric corrected, "I told him where we were, and I'm telling you to keep moving. Let's go. Audrey, now."

I followed Elena and Ric out of the woods, although reluctantly.

* * *

><p>" Stefan's out there somewhere and now Damon, and we're just sitting in this car?" Elena asked<p>

" Let the vampires fight the hybrid zombie mountain man." Ric said, " I'll take care of keeping the humans safe ."

" I thought you were checked out of taking care of people ." I said

" I know what you're doing. Don't. There doesn't need to be a lesson here." Ric said

" You're better at it than you think, you know?" Elena said

"Oh, boy, are you a sucker for a lost cause or what?"

" You're not a lost cause, Ricky boy." I told him, "You're just lost. But so is Jeremy, and so are we. Our family is gone. We don't have anybody. I'm sorry, but you don't have anybody either, so…"

"We're kinda right for each other." Elena added

"Exactly."

" I'm keeping the ring then." he said after a few moments

Then I smiled and looked out the window to see Damon approaching the car. I got out and went towards him.

"Damon." I said, " Are you okay?"

"Fine, bite free" he said," Get back in the car."

"Can you just give me one minute to appreciate that you're not dead?" I asked

"I'll give you 10 seconds, 9, 8..." he said, grabbing my shoulders and turning me back towards the car, " Hey, Ric, did you happen to see where I parked my car?"

"Stop, being such a caveman." I told Damon as he pushed me towards the car

After we had all gotten in the car we drove home.

* * *

><p>I entered my room after I had showered and gotten into my Pjs and I saw Damon staring out my window.<p>

"Really?" I asked, annoyed that I couldn't walk into my room, just once, and be by myself

"I was wrong." Damon said, confusing me

"Are you drunk?" I asked him

"No." he said , sounding offended, as he turned around, " I thought Stefan was gone but I was wrong."

"You saw him out there? Is he okay?"

"No, he's not ok, Audrey." Damon said, " He's an insufferable martyr that needs his arse kicked... But he can be saved."

" What happened out there?" I asked him, " What made you change your mind?"

"I changed my mind because even in his darkest place, my brother still can't let me die. So I figure I owe him the same in return. I'll help you bring him back ."

"Thank you." I said, " Now Elena can get her man back."

"But before I do, I need you to answer one question." he said, "What made you change your mind?"

" What do you mean?" I asked

"You were so h*llbent on staying on that mountain, then you just gave up. So what changed your mind?"

" We were under attack, Damon ." I said

"You had a bag full of weapons and a teacher with an eternity ring. You could have kept going ."

"It was too dangerous ."

" It was too dangerous going out there to begin with, so what was it?"

"Why are you being like this?" I asked

" What changed your mind, Audrey?" he insisted

" I didn't want to see you get hurt, ok? I was... I was worried about you." I admitted

"Thanks." he smirked before heading towards the door

" Yes I worry about you." I said, stopping him, " Why do you even need to hear me say it?"

He turned to look back at me.

" I need to know that you still care for me so I can do this." he said putting his hands on my and bringing his lips down to mine.

I was shocked at first but caught on quickly and started kissing him back. Our lips moved in sync for a few minutes before I heard someone clear their throat. I pulled away from Damon and turned to see Ric standing in my doorway.

"Ric." I said, " You're here."

" Good night, Audrey." Damon said before walking past Ric and heading down the stairs

"Do you know what you're doing there?" Ric asked me

"I can't say that I do, Ric."


	3. The End Of The Affair

_**Edited on 2/25/12**_

**Chapter Three- The End Of The Affair **

I rolled over in my sleep and came in contact with something firm but very comfortable.

" Rise and shine sleepy head." I heard someone say

I looked up and saw that it was Damon that I was laying my head on. I screamed and sat up quickly.

"What are you doing?" I said, slightly annoyed, " Get out."

"You know you were dreaming about me." he said, smirking, " It explains the drool."

I hit him before looking at my clock.

"Six a.m. Seriously?" I asked him, " Do you really have nothing better to do at six a.m.?"

"Fine, don't come with me to bring Stefan home. See ya." He said getting off my bed

"Wait." I said, stopping him, " What? Where is he?"

"Windy City."

"He's in Chicago?" I asked, "How do you know?"

"Came to me in a dream. I was naked. You would have loved it. Start packing." he said before walking over to my dresser.

"Is he okay?"

"Well, lets just say he's not there to meet Oprah." he said going through my drawers, " Ooh," he said pulling out a pair of red lacy underwear, " Put these in the yes pile."

I got off my bed and took the underwear from him and put them back in the dresser before glaring at him.

"What about Elena?" I asked him

"Already up and packing."

Perfect." I said, " Now, get out so I can pack and change."

Then I pushed him out of my room and locked the door before he could say another word.

* * *

><p>Elena, Damon, and I were driving down the highway in Damon's car. Damon driving, me in shotgun, and Elena sitting in the back.<p>

"I sure hope we find him, 'cause it would suck if the last memento of Stefan was that crappy old necklace." Damon said to Elena as she fussed with her necklace

"It's antique, Damon." she told him, " Like you."

"Oh no she didn't." I laughed

Damon grabbed a book from next to Elena.

"Here read this," he said to Elena, " it paint a pretty little picture of Stefan's first experience in Chicago."

"It's Stefan's diary. I'm not going to invade his private thoughts." Elena responded, looking at the journal

"You need to be prepared for what you're about to see." Damon said

" I've seen Stefan in his darkest periods." she said, " I can handle it."

Damon took the diary and started ready from it.

"March 12th, 1922." he started, "I've blacked out days. I wake up in strangers bed's in places I don't recognize with women I don't remember." he turned to me, " Ahh! I'm shocked. Stefan's not a virgin?"

Elena grabbed to diary from his hands and Damon and I laughed, " Eye's on the road grandma."

"Fine." he said, "Back to my game. Tell me if you see a Florida plate."

"May I?" I asked Elena

"Sure." she said handing Stefan's diary up to me.

As soon as I had it in my hands I started to see something.

_I heard jazz music being sung in the back round as I saw Stefan at a bar drinking with a bunch of other guys and being really obnoxious. I wouldn't have thought anything about it if it hadn't been for there clothes. They were wearing suits and very old ones at that._

"_Sorry to crash the party boys but some of actually came here to hear the music. Not you." a blonde said that was dressed in a white …flapper dress? Okay, now I knew something was wrong_

"_I'm sorry sweetheart." Stefan said, " Are we offending you?"_

_The guys at the bar laughed. The blonde stepped closer and touched his face._

"_It would take much more then a baby face like this to offend me." she told Stefan before walking away._

"_Hey, hey, hey." Stefan said, catching up to her, " You ever going to tell me your name?"_

"_Sure." she replied, " When you earn it. Now do Gloria a favor and stick a sock in it ." _

_Then she walked back onto the dance floor with her date._

I gasped and dropped the diary when the vision stopped.

"What's wrong?" Damon asked

"I think I just had a vision from the 1920's."

"I thought you only saw the future?" Elena asked me

"So did I."

* * *

><p>A few hours later we were walking down the hallway of an old apartment building.<p>

"Stefan could live anywhere in Chicago and he chose this place?" Elena asked

"There used to be an all girl high school around the corner, but it shut down for attendance issues." Damon told us, "Weird."

"If you're trying to scare us into giving up and going back it's not going to work." I said

"Shh." Damon said holding a finger to his lips

He turned to the door we had stopped in front of and twisted the handle until it snapped off. We walked into the small apartment that obviously hadn't been occupied for awhile.

"Here we are." Damon started, "Stefan's second personality home."

"Pretty obvious he hasn't been here in a while." I said taking in all the dust.

"The tours not over yet."

Damon walked over to a wall and opened up a hidden door to reveal a bunch of alcohol.

"Stefan hid his alcohol. What a monster." Elena said sarcastically

"Take a closer look." he told us

Elena and I walked into the compartment and saw a long list of names.

"It's a list of names." Elena stated

"Mm-hmm."

"Are these are all of his victims?" I asked, realization hitting me when I saw the first name on the list, Giuseppe Salvatore

"Still handling it?" Damon asked us.

"What were you doing in the 1920's?" Elena asked as we walked out of the small area

"Paving the way for women's liberation?" I added sarcastically

" I was around." he responded, " Stefan was a cocky ripper d-bag. But I could avoid him and still indulge in a few Daisy Buchanan's of my own."

"I'm sure could." I said

Then he headed toward the door.

"Where are you going?" Elena asked him

"His old stomping ground."

"We're coming with you." I said

"No. You two stay here and come up with an actual plan." he told us, " I'll come back when I find him."

Then he walked out the door and shut it behind him.

* * *

><p>Elena was on Stefan's bed reading his diary about an hour later, while I was sitting on a chair next to the bed. I heard footsteps coming towards the door and locked eye's with Elena when we heard Klaus and Stefan talking. She pointing towards the place where Stefan had his liquor and we made our way over there quickly and hid inside.<p>

"Do you feel that?" I heard Klaus ask Stefan, " Is anybody here?"

"It's been vacant for decades." Stefan said, " People must break in all the time. Why did you bring me here?"

" Your friend, Liam Grant, the one who drank his wife's blood... I never could figure out why you wanted his name. And then you told me your little secret. It was all part of your special little ritual."

"To write it down." Stefan said and I turned to look at the list next to us and saw the name Liam Grant written on it.

"And relive the kill over and over again." Klaus explained opening the door and Elena and I backed up as far as we could, " Believe me know?"

Stefan walked in and saw us in the corner. He looked at us for a few moments before saying, " Look what I found."

My eye's widened and I was sure he was going to expose us but instead a bottle of scotch from the from the shelf in front of him.

"1918. Single malt."

"My favorite." Klaus commented, " Let's go find someone to pair this with."

Then Stefan closed the door and I heard their footsteps become fainter and fainter as they left the apartment.

* * *

><p>After we were sure Stefan and Klaus were gone I called Damon and waited for him to come. Elena had a vervain dart and held it in her hand as we waited. We heard footsteps and hid behind a wall but when the door opened Damon walked in.<p>

"Finally!" I exclaimed, "I called you an hour ago."

He threw a bag into my arms.

"Make yourselves presentable. I know where Stefan's going to be tonight." He said before sitting on the couch.

"We tell you that we were practically discovered by Klaus and you're worried about what we're wearing?" Elena asked, upset

" I had an hour to realize what a bad idea it was to leave you two here alone, process it, and move on." he told us, " Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah." we said

"Great. Now get dressed." he told us, " You're all road-trippy and gross."

I rolled my eyes and asked "So you know where he's going to be?"

"Yes, with Klaus." he said, " So I'll distract Klaus and you to deal with Stefan."

"Okay." Elena agreed

"Thanks." I said

Damon got up off the couch and walked toward us.

"But you're going to have about ten minutes tops before that hybrid freak rips my heart out so tell me you can do this." he said looking me in the eyes

"We can do this." I replied before walking over to the bag of clothes I had set down.

I opened it up and found a red off the shoulder shirt, Black ankle boots, and black leather pants.

"You got me leather pants?" I asked him

"I thought as long as you would be dressing up I would get something out of it." he said with a smirked

"You're an arse but at least you have good taste in clothing." I told him before grabbing the clothes and heading into the bathroom to change.

* * *

><p>"What is wrong with you?" Stefan asked as he came out of the bar<p>

"What is wrong with you? You kill Andie and almost kill Audrey one day, you save my life the next. What are you good, bad? Pick one!" Damon exclaimed

"Klaus almost saw Elena and Audrey today." Stefan told him, " You have to take them out of Chicago."

"They're not going anywhere until they have you checked into vampire rehab and on the mend. Trust me. I've tried."

"They are the key to everything." Stefan explained, " Klaus can't know that their alive."

"What are you talking about?"

"They were supposed to die in the sacrifice and they didn't. Now Klaus can't create any new hybrids. His witch is seconds away from figuring that out. Tell Elena and Audrey to go home and forget about me."

"Tell them yourself." Damon said and they both turned to look at us standing a few feet away.

* * *

><p>"You shouldn't be here." Stefan said after Damon had gone inside<p>

" Where else would we be?" Elena asked Stefan

" What do you want?" Stefan asked, " Damon won't be able to distract Klaus for long ."

Elena put her hand on Stefan's face and said, "Come home." before embracing him

She was about to stab him in the back with the vervain dart when he caught her hand.

"How much clearer can I be?" he asked us, "I don't want to come home."

Then he let go of Elena's hand.

"Klaus is obsessed with siring his hybrids. The second he finds out you two are alive, he'll figure out why it's not working."

"Look, I know you're trying to protect us, but we can't let you do it." I said, " Come with us, Stefan, please."

"And what do you expect if I do? Huh? It's never going to be the same."

"We know that." Elena said

"I don't think you do. I've left bodies scattered from Florida to Tennessee. Innocent people. Humans."

"Lexi found you like this before." Elena started, " In the twenties and she saved you."

"And you know what I did after that?" He asked rhetorically, " I spent 30 years trying to pull myself together. To a vampire, that's nothing. To you two? That's half your life."

"We can't give up on you." I told him

"Yes, you can. It's done. That part of my life is done. I don't want to see either of you. I don't want to be with you, Elena, and I don't want to be friends with you ,Audrey. I just want you both to go."

Then he turned around and headed back into the bar.

* * *

><p>Elena and I were back in Damon's car when Damon arrived.<p>

"You two okay?" he asked

"Just drive." Elena said, her voice trembling

Damon started the car and we began or journey home.


	4. Disturbing Behavior

_**Edited 2/25/12**_

**Chapter Four- Disturbing Behavior**

" I just don't know why you want to bring chili to a potluck." Damon said to Elena as He, Elena, and I were in the kitchen, " Everybody brings chili."

"I know right." I said from beside him, " That's why I'm being original. Rice and pea's, my dad's recipe, straight from Jamaica."

"Hey Ric." Damon said as Alaric entered the room

"What's up?" Ric asked him

"What time do you want to go to the Lockwood Party?" Elena asked Ric

"Ah. Those founders parties aren't really my thing." Ric replied

"Show up there's gonna be nine other people that brought chili." Damon continued with his chili rant

"It's an old family recipe, okay?" Elena said

"Yeah, I know." he said, " I knew you're old family and they made sucky chili."

He came over to me and took the knife from my hand.

"Hey!" I exclaimed, " I was using that."

"I know." he said, smirking

I pushed him with my shoulder and laughed .

"Why are you here again?" Ric asked Damon

"They know." Damon answered

"He thinks were gonna break." Elena told Ric, " But were not gonna break."

"Were going to keep cooking and pretend like we didn't spend the entire summer looking for someone that didn't want to be found." I added

"They're in denial." Damon stage whispered

"We're not in denial." Elena said

"No?" Damon asked, " You're still wearing this necklace. Isn't this a reminder of your unbreakable bond with Stefan?"

"Shut your face and let her be, Damon." I said, grabbing the knife and finishing what I was doing.

"Fine." he said walking away from Elena

* * *

><p>I heard the doorbell ring and followed Elena out of the kitchen. She opened the door and Care was standing there with a dish in here hands.<p>

"I come bearing gifts." she said

"Please say that's not chili." Elena sighed

Before Care could respond Bonnie came in.

"Bonnie!" I exclaimed

"I'm back." she said giving Elena and I hugs

"I leave town for the summer and everything goes to h*ll for all of you."

"Bonnie." Jeremy said coming down the stairs

"Jeremy." Bonnie said before jumping into his arms and kissing.

I gasped when I saw Anna at the top of the stairs.

"What?" Care asked

" You're shoe's are adorable." I said, covering my tracks

"Thank you."

I nodded before looking back to the stairs to see that Anna was gone.

* * *

><p>Elena, Caroline, Bonnie, and I were sitting in the kitchen after Jer had gone back upstairs.<p>

"The problem with my dad's normal side of the family is normal made for a really boring summer." Bonnie said

"Normal is much better than paranormal." Aurora said coming into the kitchen

"Aurora, you're here." I said, " Good, you can help me with this rice."

"Okay." she said walking over to me

"I know what you mean, Aurora." Care said, " After the last few days I would kill for normal."

Care started to pour the chili into a crock pot.

"Since when did you learn how to cook?" she asked Elena

"Audrey helped." she said, " But only because Damon was helping her."

"Damon's helping you cook?" Bonnie asked me

"All of you can stop judging." I told them, " He's just being a good friend."

"Where did you get that necklace?" Aurora asked me

"Damon." I answered

"Oh, so he's giving you jewelry now?" Care asked

"It was just a birthday gift." I replied

" From his mother before she died and he told him 'give this to someone special' " Elena quoted Damon

"You heard that?" I asked, " Eavesdropper!"

Before she could answer she yelled

"Did I splash you?" Care asked her

"No, no, my necklace." Elena said pulling it off her skin, " It burnt me."

"Maybe it's a sign you shouldn't be wearing it." Aurora said

"Aurora." Bonnie started

"I'm just saying."

"Let me see it." Bonnie told Elena

Elena held out the necklace to her and as soon as Bonnie touched it, it sparked and Elena dropped it.

"What the h*ll was that?"

* * *

><p>Bonnie, Care, Elena, and I were sitting on benches on the Lockwood property and were trying to figure out what happened with the necklace.<p>

"I have an identification spell that might be able to tell me what magic affected the necklace." Bonnie said, looking at a page in the grimoire

Elena handed her the necklace and Bonnie.

"It's gonna take awhile so tell me if anyone's coming."

"So are you and Damon like a thing, now?" Care asked me

"What?"

"Caroline…" Bonnie started

"Focus." Care told her before turning back to me, " As your friend, that worry's for you daily, what is going on between you and Damon?"

"There is nothing going on between Damon and I ." I said, " He's been just as focused on finding Stefan as Elena and I have been."

"Yeah, but that doesn't make him any less Damon." Elena said

"Exactly." Caroline continued, " If my own father, who I love dearly, can't change me. No one's changing Damon. Not even you."

"Look, why are we even talking about this?" I asked

"Hey, guys." Bonnie said, pulling us away from our conversation

We all turned to her to see the necklace was levitating.

"What are you doing?" Care asked

"I'm not doing anything." Bonnie told her, " It has it's own magic."

* * *

><p>"Did Stefan ever tell you where he got the necklace?" Care asked as we were heading to the door of the Lockwood mansion.<p>

"No." Elena replied, " And I never asked. Hopefully Bonnie will be able to figure it out."

"Please tell me it's time to go." Ric said, joining us

"Beyond." I said, " Where's Damon?"

"Probably off doing bad thing's to good people." Care answered, " Consider me the honesty police."

Then she looked into the other room and hid behind me.

"What is it?" Elena asked her at the same time Ric asked "What's the matter?"

"It's my dad." she explained

We turned to see Bill in the other room getting a drink.

"Why would he even show up here?" Elena asked

"I don't know but I can't…" she didn't finish the sentence

"We get it." Elena said, " I'll call you later."

Care nodded before heading upstairs.

"What was that all about?" Ric asked Elena and I

"Speaking of doing bad thing's to good people…" I said as we headed out the door

As we walked down the stairs Damon joined us.

"Wait, Houston we have a problem." he said

"Where have you been?" I asked

"Managing Bill Forbes." he said, " Apparently he's impervious to compulsion."

"How?" Ric asked

"I have no idea. But he threatened to out me. Don't get me started on the irony of that."

"What did you do to him?" I asked, " How did you know the compulsion doesn't work?"

"That's not the most important piece of information I mentioned, Audrey."

" What does he want?" Ric asked

" He wants to control the council." Damon responded, " Says it's been compromised."

" It has!" Ric replied

" He wants to put vervain in the town's water supply." Damon continued

" Maybe it's not a bad idea." Elena said, " I mean, it'll help you keep yourself in control now that Stefan's not here to... "

" To what? To keep me in check? Make me behave? I should have killed him this morning." Damon said

" He's Caroline's dad, Damon." I told Damon

" Yeah, and when I kill him, she'll have one more parent than we do."

" Oh, come on, Damon!" Ric said putting stepping in front of Damon when he tried to pass

" You're repeatedly killing my buzz today, Ric. Step aside."

" Yeah, it's not going to happen."

" Your temporary funeral." Damon said before snapping his neck

"Damon, no!" Elena said, " What is wrong with you?"

Damon walked past us and headed inside.

"I'll call Care and get her to help with Damon." I said, " Will you be able to get Ric into my car?"

"Yeah." she said and I handed her the keys before grabbing my phone out of my pocket and dialing Care's number.

"I'm only answering in case it's a friend emergency." Care answered her phone

" It's an emergency." I said walking after Damon

* * *

><p>"I'm stronger than you little girl." Damon said as I entered the room and I saw him holding Caroline by the neck<p>

"But I'm angrier." she said before kicking him away then she grabbed her dad and left.

"Bummer." Damon said from the floor, " I love a good girl fight."

"You can't do this anymore, Damon." I told him, " Not in this town. Not around me."

" Why not? It's nothing I haven't done before." he said, picking himself off the floor, " Why is it suddenly so important for everyone to keep me in check?"

"Because I don't want you to be what other people think that you are." I said

"What? A monster? Sorry to disappoint you, Audrey, but last time I checked, I was still a vampire!" Damon snapped

"Yes but I wish that you didn't have to act like one!" I yelled

"I am not Stefan." he retorted, " How about you stop trying to turn me into him."

Then he walked out of the room leaving me slightly jarred.

* * *

><p>"I am not going to tell you I told you so." Care said as we walked across the square<p>

"Thank you." I said

"But I did tell you." she continued

"Ok, you and Damon were both right." I said, " I was trying to change him. But if he wants to be in my life... "

"Wait." Care interrupted me, "It's been a long week, so I'm just going to be blunt. It doesn't matter what he does, Damon's gotten under your skin."

"That's not true." I argued feebly

" God, just admit it, Audrey."

"Admit what, Caroline?" I asked, " That I love him? That I shouldn't love him because it's wrong for me to be happy with all of this going on with you and Elena and everybody else?"

"You do deserve to be happy, Audrey." Care told me before sighing

I turned to see Bill walking to his car.

"Do you need me to…?"

"No, I got it." she said before heading over to him.

I continued walking across the square and I saw Bonnie and Elena talking at the Grill.

"Hey." I said, " Taking a seat."

" So I saw Jeremy and he said that you still have my necklace." Elena said

"Yeah, I haven't figured out what's going on with it yet." Bonnie said

"I know. But I just... I feel weird without it. The whole Stefan of it all." Elena said

" Okay." she said handing over the necklace, " Did Jeremy also tell you he's been seeing the ghosts of his dead girlfriends?"

"What?" Elena asked

"So he finally told you?" I asked

"He told you?" Bonnie asked me

"I can see them so he didn't have to." I said

"You're kidding." Elena said and I started getting a really weird feeling coming from her

"I wish." I said

"It's because I brought him back to life. The witches said there would be consequences. Guess they were right ." Bonnie said

Bonnie and I turned to the waitress to thank her and when we turned back Elena was gone.

"What the h*ll? " I said looking around but not finding Elena anywhere


	5. The Reckoning

**I would like to thank grapejuice101 for all of the help with this chapter.**

**Chapter Five-The Reckoning**

Bonnie, Tyler, Care, Aurora and I were setting up rat traps in a classroom when Matt walked in and set them all off.

"Ah, Come on!" Care yelled, "Seriously? Do you know how long it took to set this up?"

"Forgot about Senior prank night, huh?" Tyler asked Matt

"Clearly." Matt replied

"How could you forget?" Care asked, " We've only been waiting for this since like freshman year."

"Yeah, Matt." I said, " If I'm doing this, you're doing this."

" I'm kind of surprised any of you are doing this." Matt said

"Caroline's making us." Bonnie said

"Everyone except Elena." I said, " She's sick so she get's out of it."

"She's probably just faking it." Aurora added, making me laugh

"We're about to be seniors. These are the memories that stay with us forever, and if we don't…"

"Then what's the point of it all?" I finished

"Go ahead make fun." Care said, " I don't care."

"You're all lame." Tyler said, " And I've got ten more classrooms to prank."

Then he grabbed his bag and headed out of the class room.

I stood up and headed towards the door.

"Wait. Where are you going?" Aurora asked

"To superglue Alaric's desk shut." I said, "I'm making memories."

I smiled and she smiled back before yelling, "I love you." as I walked out of the room.

I passed Tyler and some others in the hallway and kept walking until I reached the double doors. I opened them and continued walking until I bumped into Klaus.

"There's my girl." he said

"Klaus."

"You're supposed to be dead." he said, " What are we going to do about that?"

* * *

><p>Klaus had me by the upper arm as he pulled me through the corridors.<p>

"You put a rather large kink in my plans, sweetheart." he said, " The whole point of breaking the curse and becoming a hybrid was to make more hybrids. I haven't been able to do that. Now my bet is, it has something to do with the fact that you're still breathing."

"If you're going to kill me just do it." I said

"Not until I know I'm right." he said, " But I do have way's of making you suffer."

We entered the gym where a bunch of kids were filling up cups with water and setting them all around the floor.

"Attention, seniors." Klaus said in a very American accident, "You have officially been busted. Prank night is over. Head home."

Then he stopped in front of Dana and Chad.

"You two." Klaus said, " I remember you."

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Dana asked

"Oh, don't worry, I wasn't in my right head last time we met." he said, then started compelling her, "Lift your foot up ,please, Dana."

"If she drops her foot, Chad, I want you to beat her to death." He said, " Understood?"

Chad nodded

"Don't, Klaus." I said, " You don't have to hurt anybody."

"Come on, Love." He said, smiling, "Of course I do."

* * *

><p>"Keep it up." Klaus told Dana<p>

"Where's Stefan?" I asked, " What did you do to him?"

"Stefan's on a time out."

The doors we had come opened and Bonnie and Matt walked in.

"Bonnie! Get out of here." I yelled

"Ah, I was wondering when you'd show up. Now we can get started." Klaus said, " Dana, why don't you relax? You and Chad sit tight." then he turned to Bonnie, " I assume you're the reason why Audrey is still walking around alive?"

"That's right." she said, " If you want to blame someone, blame me."

"No need for blame, love." Klaus told her, "Just your witchy interference seems to have caused some undesirable side effects. And since you caused the problem, I'm going to have you find the fix."

Then the blonde from my vision of the twenties came in dragging Tyler by the arm.

"Get off of me." Tyler told her

"Hush now."

"I'd like you all to meet my sister, Rebekah." Klaus introduced he, " Word of warning, she can be quite mean."

"Don't be an arse." she said throwing Tyler into Klaus's arms

"Leave him alone." I said

" I am going to this very simple. Every time I attempt to turn a werewolf into a vampire hybrid, they die during the transition. It's quite horrible actually."

Then he bit his wrist and shoved it into Tyler's mouth, making him drink his blood.

"I need you to find a way to save my hybrids, Bonnie. And for Tyler's sake... You better hurry."

The he snapped Tyler's neck and he fell to the floor, dead.

* * *

><p>"He killed him." Matt said, next to Tyler's body<p>

"He's not dead." I said, " Klaus's blood will turn him into a vampire."

"And if Bonnie's successful, he'll live through his transition. Go on, then. Go and fetch your grimoires. and enchantments and what-not. I'll hold on to Audrey…" Klaus said holding onto my arm, "For safe-keeping."

Bonnie looked at me, unsure, but I nodded to her and she and Matt left.

"So this is the latest psychic?" Rebekah asked from behind me, " The original was much prettier."

"Enough , Rebekah." Klaus said warily, "Take wolf boy elsewhere, would you?"

She bent down and grabbed Tyler's arm before dragging him out of the gym.

"Just ignore her." Klaus whispered in my ear, " Petty little thing."

* * *

><p>I was sitting next to Chad and Dana when Stefan walked in.<p>

"Stefan." I said, standing

"Klaus." Stefan said

"Come to save your damsel, mate?" Klaus asked him

" I came to ask for your forgiveness." Stefan told him, " And pledge my loyalty."

"Well, you broke that pledge once already ." Klaus said

"Audrey means nothing to me anymore." Stefan said, " And whatever you ask of me... I will do."

" Fair enough. Let's drink on it. Kill them." Klaus said, signaling to Chad and Dana, " What are you waiting for? Kill them."

"No! Stefan, don't. He's not going to hurt me. He already said…" Before I could finish Klaus slapped me hard across the face, causing me to fall to the floor.

Stefan charged Klaus, fangs out but Klaus caught him by the throat.

"She means nothing to you? The lies just keep piling up." Klaus said

"Let her go." Stefan chocked out, " I'll do whatever you want, you have my word."

"Your word doesn't mean much. I lived by your word all , during which time I never had to resort to this…" Klaus said starting to compel Stefan, "Stop fighting."

"Don't do this." Stefan pleaded

"I didn't want to. All I wanted was your allegiance. Now I'm going to have to take it."

"Don't…" Stefan continued

"You will do exactly as I say when I say it. You will not run, you will not hide, you will simply just obey." Klaus said

"No!" I exclaimed, " Stefan!"

"Now kill them, Ripper." Klaus told him

Stefan's fangs came out and he ran over to Dana and feeding on Dana before dropping her lifeless body to the floor.

* * *

><p>"It's always nice to see a vampire in his true element." Klaus said, " The species has become such a broody lot."<p>

"No. You did this to him." I argued

"I invited him to the party, love." Klaus said, "He's the one dancing on the table."

"Where is it? Where's my necklace?" Rebekah asked, charging in

"What are you talking about?" Klaus asked her

"That doppelganger had my necklace. Look." she said handing Klaus a phone

"Well, well." Klaus mused, " More lies."

"Where is it?" Rebekah asked me

" Don't have it." I said

"You're lying." She screamed before sinking her teeth into my neck

"Knock it off." Klaus yelled, ripping her off of me

"Make her tell me where it is, Nik!" she shouted

Klaus came over to me and asked, " Where's the necklace sweetheart? Be honest."

"I'm telling the truth." I said, " Katherine stole it."

"Katerina. Of course. Well, that's unfortunate." he said, " If we had the necklace it would make things a whole lot easier for your witch, but since we're doing this the hard way, let's put a clock on it, shall we?"

He headed over to the clock and turned it on.

"Twenty minutes." Klaus said, " If Bonnie hasn't found a solution by then, I want you to feed again. Only this time, I want you to feed on Audrey. You know you want to."

"No. Klaus." I said, " Don't do this to him."

"No one leaves." he said, "If she tries to run, fracture her spine."

Then he and Rebekah left.

* * *

><p>I looked up at the clock and there was only six minutes left.<p>

"Caroline's dad." I said, "Stefan, he was able to resist compulsion. I don't know how, but he did it. Maybe it's possible."

" Yeah, yeah. Maybe it's just mind control, right?" Stefan asked sarcastically, " Maybe it just takes some focus, a couple decades of training. No big deal."

"Stefan, you can control this." I said, " When that buzzer goes off, just... just drink from me."

" You don't get it. I can't stop, Audrey! I'm a ripper! A ripper doesn't stop! I listen to the words that come out of your mouth, and all I hear is the sound of your heart pumping blood through your body." he yelled, " And when that clock ticks down... I'm going to have to feed on you. And you want to know what's worse? I'm not going to be able to stop."

" I don't believe that." I said, "You can fight it. You just have to want it bad enough."

"Why?"

"Because you're like the brother I never had." I said, " And if not for me, do it for you're girlfriend. You'll fight because after everything that you two been through, you owe her that!."

" You know what, you're right. You're right. I owe her everything. Because through all of this, she is the one thing that has kept me from giving up; from turning it all off. But I can't help what I am, Audrey. The more blood that I get, the more I want, and if I get so much as near yours... You are dead."

* * *

><p>"Audrey, you have to run." Stefan said with seconds left on the clock<p>

" But Klaus said that if I run... " I began

" I know what he said, but if you stay, it won't matter." Stefan said, " Audrey, please, please, please. There's no other way."

" There is another way, Stefan." I insisted, " It's for you to fight."

Then a buzzer went off signaling that time had run out.

"Fight, Stefan." I said, " Don't give up."

" I can't hold it." he said

I screamed when his fangs came out and he ran at me. He grabbed on to a railing next to me and yelled, " Audrey, run! Go!"

This time I followed his advice and ran out of the gym. I ran down the hall until I found a door. I opened it and ran right into Klaus.

"We've got to stop meeting like this." he said

* * *

><p>"Now this is fascinating." Klaus said, dragging me into the cafeteria where Stefan was, " I've never seen this before. Resisting compulsion for a girl. Why don't you turn it off?"<p>

"No!" Stefan yelled

"Come on." Klaus said, " Your humanity is killing you. All the guilt must be exhausting. Turn it off ."

"No." Stefan repeated

"Stefan…" I started

"You're strong." Klaus said, " But not that strong. Turn it off."

"NO!" Stefan yelled, pushing Klaus away

Klaus ran at him and held him to the wall by the throat.

"Turn it off!" he said, compelling Stefan

"What did you do?" I asked after Klaus let go of Stefan

"I fixed him." he said, " But I think a test is in order, don't you?"

He walked behind me and said, "Ripper... Perhaps you'd like a drink.. From the psychic's neck."

His face slowly vamped out and I screamed as he sank his fangs into my neck. Slowly everything went black.

* * *

><p>I woke up and saw that I was in the hospital, one of the nurses walked in.<p>

"Where am I?"

"The hospital." she replied, " You went through a terrible ordeal."

"I have to get out of here." I said

"Ah, not an option." the nurse told me, "You've lost a lot of blood."

I looked down and noticed a blood bag filled with my blood.

"Wait, you're taking my blood?" I asked

"Of course." she said, nonchalantly, "It's very important for your friend Klaus."

I looked down at my arm to see she was injecting me with something.

"No."

"Don't fight it sweetie." the nurse said, "He told me you need plenty of rest."

I tried to fight it but the darkness soon won over again.

* * *

><p><em>Klaus and Rebekah were waiting outside of the hospital talking.<em>

"_So the psychic isn't the problem her blood is the solution." Rebekah stated_

"_Seems so." Klaus said_

"_How did you know?" she asked_

"_Well, you know how much the original witch hated me." Klaus said, "_ _Do you honestly think I would do anything other than the opposite of what she says."_

" _A thousand years in the grave and she's still screwing with you."_

" _Well, it makes sense if you think about it from her perspective. It was her failsafe in case I ever broke the hybrid curse. The psychic had to die in order for me to become a hybrid, but if she was dead…" _

" _Then you couldn't use her blood to sire yourself a new species." Rebekah finished_

" _Leaving me alone for all time."_

" _Is that what this is about?" Rebekah asked, " Your obsession with hybrids. You just don't want to be alone?"_

" _What I want is to take my girl, take my hybrid the h*ll out of this one pony town. You know, why don't you, uh, why don't you get the truck? I'll get Audrey." Klaus told her _

_Rebekah nodded before walking of to find the truck._

"_Well look who finally showed up to the party." Klaus said when Damon walked up to him_

"_Where is she?" Damon asked_

"_Audrey? She's making a donation to the better cause."_

_Damon tried to pass him but Klaus stopped him._

"_I'm afraid I can't let you interfere, mate." Klaus said_

"_You'll have to kill me." Damon said_

"_Oh, I would love to kill you, but I made a pledge to your brother, and unlike him, I keep my word." Klaus said, " Although, you know what, thinking about it now, he probably doesn't care that much anymore." _

_Klaus pushed him into the hood of a car and was about to kill him when Damon said, "Don't you want to hear about you're friend Mikael?"_

" _What do you know about Mikael?" Klaus asked_

" _Just that he knows you're here."_

" _You're bluffing." Klaus decided_

" _Katherine and I found him." Damon told him, " Consider it our leverage."_

_Klaus considered this for a moment before throwing Damon into another car and disappearing. Damon got up and headed into the hospital._

* * *

><p>I woke up when I felt someone taking the needles out of my arms. I looked up to see Damon standing over me.<p>

"Damon…"

"Hey." he said before lifting me off the bed and taking me out of the hospital.

* * *

><p>"Here, have some bourbon." Damon said, handing me a glass and sitting down next to me, " It'll help you forget."<p>

I took a sip and it was super strong.

"Yeah, it's strong. You know I can help you forget, too. At least the memories you don't want to keep." Damon said

"No." I said, "No compulsion. I need to remember. All of it. He's really gone this time."

Damon didn't say anything.

" I watched it happen. After everything that we went through to get... to help him. Now he's just... Gone." I continued, trying my hardest not to cry, "Where were you, Damon?"

" I shouldn't have left." he said, resting his hand on my knee, " I promise you, I will never leave you again."

We looked t each other before we heard, " Well isn't this cozy?" and turned to see Stefan.

"What are you doing here brother?" Damon asked, standing in front of me

"Last time I checked I lived here." he said, " Klaus is gone, but he's asked me to keep watch on you , and less importantly Elena, until he returns. From now on, you two are under my protection."

"Wait." I said, " He knows about Elena?"

"I may have told him that." he said, " But don't worry, she is no use to him. He know that as long as Elena is kept safe you will be more cooperative." He looked between Damon and I , "By all means, carry on."

Then we watched as Stefan walked out of the room.

**Author's Note**

**I do hope this satisfied everyone. Since you guys asked, Katie begging, for this chapter I thought i might as well get it up for you guys. Leave a review and tell me what you think.**

**Audrey;D**


	6. Smells Like Teen Spirit

**Chapter Six-Smells Like Teen Spirit**

I was woken up by Elena yelling in my ear.

"Wake up, Audrey!" she said, " You promised you would come with me and Ric."

"Fine." I said, " Let me get dressed , okay?"

"Be downstairs in ten minutes." she demanded before walking out of my room

I sighed as I got up and looked at the bite I had gotten from Stefan yesterday before covering it with concealer.

* * *

><p>Elena, Alaric and I were in the woods and Ric was teaching us how to defend ourselves from vampires. Ric put on a something on his had that had stakes connected to it and then punched a dummy in the chest.<p>

" So the pressure of your punch ejects the stakes.." he told us

"Easy enough." I said stepping up to the dummy

I brought my fist back and put as much power into it as I could and the stakes went into the dummies chest.

"That's called being raised by a Jamaican, and an over-protective one at that."

"Let me give it a try." Elena said , stepping up

When she tried the stakes stayed in the sleeve.

"That's weird." she said, " Must be jammed or something."

"You're not strong enough." he said, bluntly, " Better start lifting some weights, put some meat on your bones, both of you."

"Please, I do not need to work out." I told him

"Do you know what this is?" he asked

"A vervain grenade." I said, " I've used one before."

"Then you know that the element of surprise is your only advantage when it comes to vampires." he took out the pin and threw it into my hands, " Surprise."

"Oh, my God." I said before throwing it in the air seconds before it exploded

"This isn't a joke to us, Ric." Elena said

"You think I'm joking?" Ric asked, " Vampires will take whatever they want. They will hurt whoever they want. And they'll do it without remorse. It's their nature."

" You don't have to use pronouns." Elena said, " You can say Stefan."

" Look, I get why you're here. Stefan hurt you. Neither of you want it to happen again."

" But you think that we're crazy. To believe that we can protect ourselves from a vampire who's flipped the switch on his humanity"

" I think you both found a way to get out of bed this morning. And that makes you both the strongest people I know. I think that you guy's can do pretty much anything."

* * *

><p>After we were done practicing with Ric we headed home to get ready for our first day of school. I quickly took a shower and changed into the leather pant's (what they we're amazing pants) and a black one sleeve shirt I had bought the other day. I finished the out fit off with a blue belt that was the same color as my necklace and my light blue ankle boots. Then I grabbed my bag and headed off to school.<p>

When I got there I caught up to Elena, Care, Bonnie and Aurora and we stood in front of the school.

"Here we are." Care said, " Senior year."

"Anyone else think it should feel slightly more empowering?" Bonnie asked

"Me." Aurora said, pointing to herself.

"Okay. So prank night was a bust." Care said, " But we're excepting it and moving on."

"You're right. I mean, why should I let the fact that my boyfriend is seeing the ghost of his dead girlfriend hinder this experience?" Bonnie asked, sarcastically

"Yes!" Care agreed, " And why should I let the fact that my boyfriend was turned into a hybrid put a damper on this otherwise fabulous day."

"Exactly." I said, " Plus, it took me an hour to get all of this perfect." I said, gesturing to myself, "I better have a fantastic day for all of that work."

"Today is our anniversary." Elena said, "Technically, Stefan and I met on the first day of school last year."

"Yeah. You win." Aurora said

"Are you sure you wanna be here?" Bonnie asked

"I have to be here." she said, " I have to put it behind me. New year. New life."

"Well put."

Then we all walked into the school.

* * *

><p>My phone started to ring as I opened my locker. I looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Damon.<p>

"Hey. Are you checking up on me?" I asked, " Because I'm fine."

"Yeah. So... You might not want to come here for a while." he said, " We have a new housemate. Barbie Klaus."

"Rebekah?" I said, " She's living with you? Why?"

"She's stranded." he said, " Apparently Klaus left her in the dust after I name-dropped Mikael."

" Now where left with her? No fair." I said, " So how's Stefan?"

"Oh, you know." Damon said, " Journaling, reading, shaping his hair ."

"Now, if he hadn't turned off his humanity I would believe that. What's really going on?"

"Is that the bell? Oh...Ring! Ring! Don't want to be late." then he hung up on me

I looked at my phone and decided to text him.

_How dare you hang up on me._

_You're so childish_

_~Audrey _

_I am no child._

_I am all man._

_-D_

_Really? That's not what Caroline told me__._

_~Audrey_

Then I ssmirked as put my phone away and headed of to class.

* * *

><p>On my way to class I ran into Stefan<p>

"Hello, Audrey." he said

" What are you doing here?" I asked

" What do you mean? I'm going back to school." he told me, " Go timberwolves!"

" What? Why? "

"Klaus wants me to keep an eye on you." he explained, "I'm just doing what I'm told."

"I'm gonna be late for class." I said, trying to pass him but he caught my arm

"Class is this way." he pointed the other way

"Let go of me Stefan." I said, forcefully

"Audrey, do you think I want to be a senior for the 100th time? No. I don't have a choice in the matter. And neither do you."

"I said, let go of me."

"Let go of her." Ric said, joining us

Stefan laughed but let go of me only to push Ric up against some lockers.

"Stefan, knock it off." I told him

"You're not gonna want to get in my way, Ric, okay?" Stefan said and Ric nodded, " All see you both in history."

* * *

><p>"What the h*ll is he doing here?" Ric asked when he, Elena, and I were in his room<p>

"Klaus compelled him to watch over me." I said, " Apparently I'm one of Klaus's assets now that my blood is the only way he can create hybrids ."

"Now he's a bodyguard?" Ric asked

"I don't know what he it but he's not Stefan." I replied

Then the bell rang signaling the beginning of class.

"Look, him being here isn't good for any of us." Elena said, " We have to do something."

Then her and I took our seat, Care came in and sat to my left and a guy sat next to Elena.

"You're in my seat." Stefan said and the guy moved, "Hey you." he said to Elena.

"Welcome back, seniors." Ric started, " Let's turn our brains back on, starting with this country's original founders... Native Americans."

"What about the Vikings?" Rebekah asked walking into the classroom and taking a seat

" There's no evidence that Viking explorers actually settled in the United States." Ric replied, " Who are you?"

"I'm Rebekah. I'm new." she said, " And history is my favorite subject."

* * *

><p>After school I headed over to Ric's to lift weights and after awhile Damon walked in.<p>

"What? Are you going to bench press a vampire?" he asked

"You never know."

Damon came over and stared to push down on the weights.

"What are you doing?" I asked

"Helping you out."

"Damon!"

"Come on, Buffy." he said, continuing to add pressure.

"Stop it." I said before letting go of the weights, " Like one obnoxious Salvatore isn't bad enough."

"You called. I'm here." Damon said, "What's your plan, oh warrior princess?"

"I want to lock Stefan up, at least until this Mikael guy comes, kills Klaus, and the compulsion breaks." I said, " Elena's already on board."

"Compulsion or not, Stefan's high on human blood." he said, " A lot of it."

"You've gotten him off of it before." I said

" This is different. It's not a stint in rehab, Audrey." he said "His humanity's gone. Light's out. No one's home."

"Then do it for me, Damon." I said, " Every single time I look at him, I feel like I'm going to break. And I'm not going to give him that satisfaction."

I stood up and Damon grabbed my hand and placed it on his chest.

"What are you doing ?" I asked

" Feel that? It's a sternum. Solid plate of bone." Then he spun me around and put his fingers on my back, " And right here, just below the ribcage, next to the spine, that's your way to a vampires heart. I'll do whatever you need me to do, Audrey."

I turned around and looked him in the eyes.

"No one's gonna hurt you." he continued, " Especially not my brother."

* * *

><p>Later that night Damon, Care, Ric, Elena, and I were in Ric's classroom.<p>

"Audrey and I will lure Stefan away from the bonfire." Elena said, " Then when he's distracted... "

"I'll shoot him." Ric said

"Can't Bonnie just ju-ju him?" Damon asked

"We're trying to keep Bonnie out of this. I don't trust that Stefan won't hurt her." I told him, "Caroline, are you covered?"

"Yes!" Care said, "I will make sure that the old Forbes jail cell is prepped and ready."

" We're forgetting a key player here." Damon said, "Rebekah? Wherever Stefan goes, the blonde ponytail tends to follow."

"Which is why it's your job to keep her away." Elena said

"How? She's an original. Last time I checked, we're out of daggers."

" So then preoccupy her with your charm." Elena suggested

"Might have better luck finding the dagger." Ric said

"Are you ever not going to be mad at me?" Damon asked him

"Doubtful." Ric said as Tyler walked in

"Sorry I'm late. What's going on?" he asked

" We need you to raid your mom's vervain supply." I said , "Enough to keep Stefan down for a while."

" You can't do that to Stefan." Tyler said

" Why not?" Care asked

"Yeah, Ty." I said, " Trust me, it's in everyone's best interest."

"Not Klaus's." he replied

"But Klaus is the bad guy, Tyler." Caroline told, " You know, why are you acting like some freaky, hybrid, slave minion."

"Uh oh." Damon commented

"What?" Ric asked Damon but was ignored

"Klaus made me who I am Caroline." Tyler said, " I owe him everything."

"Oh, boy." Damon said

" Ok, can we cool it on the commentary, please." Care said, annoyed

" What is going on?" Elena asked

"I'm just gonna go." Tyler said turning around

Before he could get very far Damon stabbed him in the neck with a vervain dart.

"What are you doing?" Care yelled

"He's been sired." Damon said as if that explained everything.

"Che cosa?" I asked in Italian , " Non capisco."

"You know Italian?" Damon asked

"I know a lot of things." I said suggestively

"Well, Sired. He feels loyal to Klaus because Klaus's blood created him."

" Loyal how?" Elena asked

" He'll seek acceptance from his master. It's really rare." Damon said, "But maybe not so much in hybrid."

"So how do I fix him?" Care asked

"Get a new boyfriend." Damon told her

* * *

><p>Elena and I walked up to were Stefan and Rebekah were standing and grabbed ourselves some drinks.<p>

"Elena, Audrey, hi." Stefan said, " What are you doing?"

" We're having fun, Stefan." Elena said, " Do you have a problem with that?"

Then she downed her entire drink.

"All right, take it easy. We both know you're kind of a lightweight." Stefan said

"Really? You think I'm going to let a blood addict tell me how to drink?" she said

I laughed and we both walked away.

* * *

><p>I was hanging around the bonfire when I noticed that Damon was with Rebekah and they were both hopelessly flirting with each other. Deep down I was super jealous.<p>

"What's that look?" Stefan asked, leaning on the tree behind me

"What look?"

"My brother's got his flirt on, and you're jealous." he said

"I'm not jealous." I lied

"It's all right." he said, " Be jealous by all means. I'm sure Damon will be thrilled."

"I'm not jealous, Stefan."

"All right." he said, "My mistake."

"Whatever, I'm out of here." I said before heading off to find Elena

* * *

><p>Elena and I were on the bleachers and looking at the stars when Stefan arrived.<p>

"I used to know every constellation." she said, drunk, " How did I forget them all?"

"You're both drunk." he said, " You need to go home."

" Fine." she said, standing, "Let me get my car."

"You're joking right?" Stefan asked

"Of course she is." I said, " We're taking my car, it's so much faster."

"Neither of you are driving."

"Oh, no!" Elena exclaimed, "It's the fun police."

"Man, I thought ripper Stefan was supposed to be the life of the party." I added

"Well, all right." Stefan said, "I'm driving you home."

At this Elena jumped over the railing of the bleachers and hung on to it to keep from falling.

"What are you, 5?" Stefan asked, " Get down."

"Why?" Elena asked, " Are you afraid I'm going to…"

Then she let go of the railing and almost fell backward but quickly caught herself.

"That was close." I said, "Klaus would not be happy with you."

" You're both hilarious."

" Look, Stefan, no hands." Elena said but before she could grab the railing again she fell backwards.

"Elena!" I yelled as I ran to the edge to look over the railing

I saw that Stefan had caught her.

"I knew you'd catch me." I heard Elena say

He set her down and I ran down the bleachers. I got to them in time to see Ric shoot him in the back with a vervain dart.

"You okay?" Ric asked Elena

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You both look… not sober." he commented

"The plan worked." I said, " That's all that matters. Let's just keep him out of here."

* * *

><p>I opened Ric's trunk so he and Elena could put Stefan in the back an then headed to the passengers seat. I buckled up and waited for Ric and Elena to come in the car.<p>

"Audrey!" I heard Elena and Ric yell and I looked out the drivers side window to see fire coming towards the car.

I looked farther and saw Vickie standing where the trail of fire started. I tried to open the door but it wouldn't budge.

"Open the door." Ric said

"I can't." I said, " Vickie's keeping the door locked."

"Vickie?" Elena asked

" Let's not worry about that at the moment." I said, " I can't get out."

"I'm sorry, Audrey." Vickie said, appearing in the drivers seat

"Please, Vickie." I said, " Let me go."

"I can't do that." she told me

I turned back to the window and tried to kick it out with my feet but it didn't work. Then Ric came up to the window with a lacrosse stick and tried to smash it with no avail. I turned toward Stefan in the back seat. I jumped back and shook him to wake him up. He started to wake up and he kicked out the back door.

"Hurry up before it blows." Ric said helping me out.

"Wait." Elena said and she grabs Stefan arm.

Ric helps her and then we ran as far as we could before Ric's car exploded.

"Ric, you don't happen to have explosion insurance. Do you?" I asked

"Nope."

"Well, that sucks."

* * *

><p>After the whole almost dying thing we went over to the boarding house. At the moment I was sitting on Damon's bathroom counter and he was trying to dress my burn.<p>

"Give it to me , Damon." I said as Damon held the burn cream right out of my reach

"No, let me." he said

"Damon, come on."

"Audrey, you almost got barbequed." he said, " The least I can do is apply first aid."

"Fine." I said, giving up as he put the cream on my burn, " You played your part of the plan really well."

"Oh, yeah?"

"You had Rebekah drooling all over you and you're marshmallows." I said

"Yeah, before she skewered me." he said , "I thought you were too drunk to notice."

"I was faking most of it." I said

"So was I."

We looked at each other for a moment before Ric walked in.

"Ready to get going, Audrey?" Ric asked

"I think I'll stay here tonight." I said, " The bed I have here is much comfier than the one I have back home."

"Great work tonight, Ric." Damon said, " Sorry about the car, man. Bummer."

Ric nodded before heading out of the room.

* * *

><p>Later that night Damon and I were rolling up some rugs when a vase fell onto the floor and shattered. We got up and looked around but no one was there.<p>

"Keep it up, Stefan." Damon said

"Apparently, were the maids."

Damon and I began to pick up the shattered pieces from the ground when someone came up and pushed Damon across the room.

"Damon!" I said, running over to him

He groaned and opened up his eyes.

I turned around to yell at Stefan but saw someone I thought I would never see again.

"Mason?"

"This is gonna be fun." he said before running up to me and backhanding me, causing me to black out.

**_Author's Note_**

**_Hope you guy's enjoyed this chapter because it's the last one until Friday. Review and tell me what you thought. While you're at it, tell me if you have any cute couple names for Audrey and Damon, i'm super curious if anyone can come up with one because I couldn't. See you all on Friday._**

**_Audrey;D_**


	7. Ghost World

**A song you should listen to while reading this chapter ( The last part especially for the last part) is Cosmic Love by Florence and the Machines.**

**Audrey;D**

**Chapter Seven- Ghost World**

I woke up and found myself tied to a chair with ropes. Next to me Damon was tied up similar to me but with chains and he had the fire poker sticking out of his chest and he was still unconscious. I tried to get out of the ropes but I wasn't strong enough. I looked up and gasped when I saw Mason standing in front of me with a knife.

"Please, don't hurt me." I begged

"What would be the fun in that." he said as he ran the knife from my cheek down to my chin, drawing blood.

I heard Damon start to stir as he woke up.

"Damon-" I started but was cut off when Mason punched me in the face and said, "Tell him about me and I'll kill you both."

Damon woke up and looked at his surroundings he groaned when he noticed the poker coming from his chest. Then he looked at the ground and saw his daylight ring before looking up at me .

"Low blow, Stefan." Damon said, "Low blow."

"What the h*ll happened to you two?" Stefan asked coming into the room

"Don't ask." I said

"What ever twisted ripper game this is, leave us out of it."

"I didn't do this." Stefan said

"Quit screwin' around." Damon said

Stefan came over to me and ripped the ropes off of me. Then walked over to Damon and looked at the chains.

"I didn't do this." he repeated, " It's pretty messed up though, isn't it?"

"Yep." I agreed stretching my limbs.

Stefan pulled the poker out of Damon and removed the chains from one of his hands before leaving.

"Yeah, don't worry." Damon said, "I'll just untangle myself."

I looked over by the window and saw Mason again. I got up and tried to help Damon out to no avail.

"Sorry buddy." I told him, " Chains aren't my forte."

"I got it." he said

Then I saw Mason open the blinds and let in the sun. Damon yelled in pain as his skin started to burn. I picked up Damon's ring quickly and put it on his middle finger and his skin stopped burning.

" What was that?" he asked getting out of his chains

I looked around to see that Mason was gone.

"Would you believe me if I said it was Mason Lockwood?"

* * *

><p>After I bandaged up my wound Damon and I got in his car and drove down to the square to find Bonnie. It only took us a few minutes to find her with Care, then we pulled up next to them.<p>

"Greetings, Blondie. Witchy." Damon said, "I think you got your voodoo wires all crossed when you got rid of Vicki Donovan."

"What do you mean." Bonnie said, " Why?"

Then Care got sight of me and asked, " What happened to your face, Audrey?"

"Well we just got tortured by the ghost Mason Lockwood." I answered

"Why would you say that?" Care asked

"Maybe because he chained Damon to a chair and shoved a hot poker in his chest. Let's just say I'm having déjà vu." I explained to her, " Oh, and the fact that I can see him, too."

" I thought you said that ghosts couldn't physically interact with people." Care said to Bonnie

"They can't." she retorted

"Yeah, well, I don't have time for a vengeful Lockwood. When I kill someone, they're supposed to stay dead. Whatever you screwed up, fix it." Damon said before we drove away.

* * *

><p>"Hello." I said to Ric, Elena, and Jer after I had asked Damon to drop me off in front of the Grill, "What's going on?"<p>

I took on of the empty next to Ric.

"What happened to you?" Elena asked

"Don't worry about it." I said, " What are you guys talking about?"

"Elena want's me to contact Lexi." Jer told me

"Aww, I miss her." I said

"You only knew her for a day." Elena pointed out

"Yeah, but she was awesome." I said, " Anyway, continue with your conversation."

"I don't even know if she's on the other side." Jer said

"Is that what it's called?" Elena asked

"That's what Anna calls it." Jeremy replied, "There's not like an official brochure or anything."

" So what is it, like some sort of supernatural purgatory?" Ric asked

" Well, Anna said it's like being here with all of us, only we can't see her or hear her." Jer said, " And she can't interact with anyone. She's all alone."

"That sounds terrible." I said

Then Anna appeared in the seat in between Jer and I.

"Vickie could interact." Alaric pointed out, " She blew up my car."

" Vicki had help from a witch on the other side. Anna...She's doing this all by herself ." Jer said

" I'm just saying, maybe we learned our lesson about summoning dead people." Ric said

"I'm with you there, Ricky boy."

"Do you think it's even possible to contact Lexi?" Elena asked

"I don't know." Jer said, "I didn't have an emotional connection with her. I never even met her."

Elena looked at me.

"No, don't even think about it." I said, " I only see um I don't contacted them."

"Can we just drop it, please?" Ric asked

" No, I can't drop it, Ric." Elena said, "I don't know what else to do."

" Don't you think we have a few too many dead vampires in our past to be sitting here thinking of them watching us?" Ric asked

"Wow, you just made my life really creepy." I said

"I don't think all supernatural spirits go to the other side." Anna said from next to me, " I think some of them find peace."

"Is Anna here right now?" Elena asked when Jeremy looked at what was supposed to be an empty chair

"Don't tell her I'm here." Anna said, " She won't like it."

"No." I lied

"No, no." Jer said, " I'm going to go, uh, check my work schedule."

"I'm gonna go too, I need something to eat." I said and Jer and I went inside.

* * *

><p>"What's wrong?" Anna asked when we were in the restroom so no one would here us<p>

"Why did you tell us to lie?" I asked

"Elena is Bonnie's best friend." Anna old us, " She won't like what's going on between us."

"You know what, I don't know what's going on between you two and I don't want to know." I said, " I'll let you guys deal with it and if you need me, I'll be at the bar."

Then I walked out of the bathroom.

* * *

><p>"I knew you would be drinking." I said as I sat next to Damon and Ric at the bar, " It was just a 50-50 chance of where. And Ric, I thought you two weren't talking?"<p>

"He was just telling me about Mason Lockwood

"At least here there's less of a chance that I'll be attacked by a ghost."

"I wouldn't say that." I told him, "You might jinx it."

As we sat there Mason came up and grabbed a drink form the counter.

"Mason?" Ric asked

"Hold up." I said, "You can see him?"

Ric and Damon nodded as Mason downed his drink.

"God I miss whisky." Mason said before taking his glass and hitting Damon in the face with it, causing it to shatter.

"Told you." I said

* * *

><p>"I'm never going here the end of that d*mn necklace." Damon said, texting Caroline<p>

"One of you will pay for this, right?" Mason asked holding up a shot, "Cheers."

"Let's get to it. I killed you." Damon said, " You want revenge. Get in line ."

"Actually, I want an apology." he said to Damon and I

Ric and I burst out laughing.

"I'm sorry." I said when I was done laughing

"Good luck with Damon." Ric said

"Don't you have a family to haunt?" Damon asked, " You know your nephew has turned into a mindless hybrid Minion ."

"That's why I'm here." Mason said, "To help Tyler."

"Well, sorry to break it to you, buddy, but Tyler can't be helped." I said, " At least not while Klaus is alive. Which is, like, always."

"Not necessarily." Mason said, "Not if you found a weapon that could kill him."

"There is no weapon that…" Damon started but stopped when he realized what Mason as saying, " What do you know?"

" I know you need to apologize." Mason told him

" You got to be kidding me." Damon said

" Are you incapable of remorse?" Ric asked Damon, " Just apologize!"

" You're right. I didn't have to kill you. I do a lot of things I don't have to do."

" That's good enough." Mason said with a laugh

" Meet me at the old Lockwood cellar." Mason told Damon, " Bring a shovel. And come alone."

" What, you're going to bury me alive?" Damon asked

"Don't tempt me." Mason said before walking away

"Well, I think I'll go now." I said standing, " Good luck with Mason, Damon. And Ric, I'll see you later."

Then I walked out of the Grill.

* * *

><p>I walked into the house to the smell of homemade food, which really confused me since I was the only one that cooked. I walked into the kitchen to see a woman cooking on the stove.<p>

"Excuse me?" I asked, "Who are-?"

My words caught in my throat as the woman turned around.

"Mom?"

* * *

><p>"What are you doing here?" I asked my mom when we were sitting on the couch.<p>

"I'm here to talk to you." she said, " We never actually got to say good bye."

"I've missed you so much." I told her, tears streaming down my face, " I just can't believe you're here."

"Well I am." she said, "What happened to you?" she asked taking in the cut on one side of my face and the bruise on the other.

"Just one of the benefits of being a friend of Damon's." I told her

" Yes." she said " I noticed how close you are with him."

"Not you too." I said , leaning into the couch

"Come on, spill."

"He's my friend, mom." I said

"You can't lie to me you know." she said, " I'm your mom."

"How's dad?" I asked trying to change the subject

"I haven't seen him yet." she told me, " And I won't. Not until I'm finished here. Now, quit trying to change the subject. What is going on with you two?"

"Nothing." I lied

"Liar."

"Why does everyone want me to admit something is going on between Damon and I?"

"Because there obviously something going on and the quicker you admit it the better." She said

"Why?"

"So you can be happy."

"You heard me and Caroline?" I asked

"I'm a ghost." she said, " I don't have much to do but watch people make countless mistakes."

"You think I'm making a mistake?" I asked her

"You're not following your heart, honey." she said, " When you start doing that you will never go wrong."

"You do realize how sappy that sounded, right?"

"Yeah, but what can I say, romance is sappy."

* * *

><p>After a while we had moved to the kitchen and I began eating the lasagna my mom had made and we continued to talk.<p>

"So how long have you know about all this supernatural stuff?"

"Since I was a teenager." she said, " My parents told me right before I met your dad."

"Speaking of dad, how did you know that you were in love with him?" I asked her

" It's something you just know." She said, " When I first saw him smile I new that I loved him. And ever since then we had been together."

I smiled and she smiled back at me.

" I love him, mom." I said, "So much."

"Trust me, I know." she said nodding, before looking up."It's time for me to leave."

"Mom, please don't go." I said getting up and wrapping my arms around her

"Follow your heart." she whispered before disappearing

I let the tears fall freely down my face and I started to sob as I sat down on the ground.

* * *

><p>After my mom was gone I went up to my room and began looking through old photo albums. I was looking at a picture of my mom, dad, and me when I felt someone watching me. I looked over by the open window and saw Damon.<p>

"Hey." I said nervously, "Will you come sit with me?" I patted the spot next to me on my bed.

He smiled and nodded before coming over to sit next to me.

"What's wrong?" he asked, taking in my tear streaked face

"I saw my mom today." I told him, "And, um, it was just a little to much to see her go again."

"At least you got to see her again."

I nodded.

"She made me realize something today." I told him, " I have been spending so much time trying to make sure everyone else is happy that I have been putting my happiness on the back burner. I thought that with everything going on I had to make sure everyone was happy but…"

"But what?" Damon asked

"Don't I deserve to be happy too?"

"Everyone deserves to be happy, Audrey." he replied

I looked Damon in the eyes, "You make me happy, Damon." I admitted, "I love you and… I can't stop loving you."

I put my had on his cheek and leaned in to kiss him quickly but passionately on the lips.

"I love you too." Damon said after I had pulled away.

I put my head on his chest and nodded before looked up at him.

"I want to be with you." I started, "But we have to keep this between us for a little while, okay? You make me happy but together we don't make everyone else very happy."

He laughed.

"I will do anything to be with you, Audrey." he said, " I'll keep it quiet."

"Thank you."

I fell asleep as Damon's hand started to smooth my hair down.

_**Author's Note**_

_**I know, I'm a liar, but I hope that you enjoy my lie. I decided to update two days early because I loved this chapter and really wanted people to enjoy it as soon as possible. So leave a review and tell me how i did. You know my motto 'more reviews, faster updates.' Thank you to everyone that has reviewed this story and already made it one of my favorites to write. Well, i should quit taking and let you review. Make sure to do that though, review. Maybe if i say it a few more times I'll get a bunch of reviews. Review, review, review.**_

_**Peace, Love, and Damon Salvatore**_

_**Audrey;D**_


	8. Ordinary People

_**Thank you once again to Grapejuice101 for her help with this story.**_

_**I don't own the Vampire Diaries, only Audrey and half of Jace.**_

**Chapter Eight- Ordinary People**

" So the Lockwood's really have no idea that these are underneath their property?" I asked as Ric, Elena, and I walked under the Lockwood property.

"Careful where you shine that thing." Alaric said , talking about my flash light, "Bats hate the light."

" Wait, what?" I questioned

"Audrey." someone whispered from behind me

I turned around and came face to face with Damon.

"God Damon." I said hitting him in the arm

"Scaredy-cat." he called me

"Just ignore him." Ric told me, "That's what I do."

" So you really can't get in?" I asked Damon

" No. Seems to me like the ancient Lockwood's were anti-vampire."

" What do you mean, ancient?" Elena asked him

"See for yourself."

* * *

><p>We walked a little farther into the tunnels until we came to an opening.<p>

"Well this is as far as I get to go." Damon said letting us pass

"What is all of this?" Elena asked looking at the cave in front of us.

The walls of the cave had old drawings and writing all over them.

"Ah, as far as I can tell, it's a story." Ric said, " In simple, archaeological terms, it's a really, really old story. That right there," he pointed his flashlight to a picture, " is the moon cycle. A man, a wolf."

"A werewolf." I said

"Yeah, it's the Lockwood diaries." Damon said, "Pictionary style."

"I don't understand." Elena said, "I thought the Lockwoods came here with the original founders in the 1860s?"

"I don't know." Ric said, "Maybe the Lockwoods did, but according to this wall, these werewolves have been here a lot longer than that."

"How long?" I asked him

"Long." Damon replied, "It gets better. Show them, Ric."

"Names." Ric said, shining the flashlight at some writing on the wall, "They're not native. They're written in Runic, Viking script."

" Vikings?" Elena asked

" This name here, I translated it and it reads Niklaus." Ric continued

" Klaus." I stated

" And Elijah...And Rebekah." he said, showing two more names

I walked up to one the wall with Rebekah's name on it at touched it, causing a vision.

_Rebekah was standing in front of the same wall I was and she was carving her name into it and Klaus was standing next to her._

"_Rebekah, let me have at it!" Klaus insisted_

" _Quiet, Niklaus!" Rebekah told him, "Ought to have more concentration if I'm not to slice off a finger."_

"_Father will not like you handling the blade." he informed her_

" _If I want to wield a blade, I shall wield a blade!" Rebekah said, "Father need not know."_

"_He will find out." Klaus told her, "He always does!"_

" _That is because you always tell him!"_

" _I cannot help it, he frightens me." Klaus admitted_

" _He frightens us all." Rebekah said, "That is why we stick together as one, always and forever. Right, traitor?"_

" _Right." Klaus agreed_

" _Here. You finish it I'm to help mother with the meal."_

" _Yes." Klaus said, "Go tend to dinner, leave the blades to the men, little sister."_

_Rebekah put the knife in his hand, blade down, drawing blood. _

" _Rebekah!" Klaus hissed_

" _It's just a little blood." Rebekah told him, " Be a man about it."_

Then it was over.

"Well Klaus and Rebekah have been here before." I informed them all

"These are the names of the original family?" Elena asked

" Carved into a cave that's been here since way before the founding of Mystic Falls." Ric said, "Or even the entire New World for that matter."

"Okay, this has got to be one of Klaus's fakes." Elena said

"That's what I said." Damon told us from his spot outside of the cave

"That could be true, except the last name up here made us think otherwise." Ric said

"What's the name?" I asked the obvious question

"Mikael."

"Mikael." Elena repeated, " Mikael as in the vampire hunter who knows how to kill Klaus?"

"Yep." Damon said, " And I like to call him 'papa original' ."

* * *

><p>After we were done Ric took a bunch of pictures of the walls and we headed back to his apartment. While Ric and Elena tried to figure out what the pictures meant, Damon was helping me train.<p>

"These images tell a story...to learn the story you have to decipher these images." Ric told us

I tried to fake stake Damon but he grabbed the stake from me without even trying.

"Sloppy." he told me

"Shut up, I'm new at this." I said taking the stake back

"Ghost of Christmas past Mason Lockwood said that the cave would lead us to a weapon that can kill Klaus."

"Yeah, but doesn't Mikeal have a weapon?" Elena asked

I tried to stake Damon again but he caught my hand and turned me around, holding me in his arms.

"Bang! You're dead." he said before pretending to bite my neck

I laughed before pushing him off of me and walking over to Ric and Elena.

"These images, at the very least, might tell us what that weapon is." Ric said

"Then all we have to do is find out what they mean." I said

" Fine! Fine! If I am being irritatingly not optimistic like you three." Damon said, " How are we supposed to do that?"

"Well, if the story is about the original family living here... then we go straight to the source." I said

* * *

><p>I was standing on the school grounds when Rebekah was practicing her flips for cheerleading. She continued doing flips until she stopped right in front of me.<p>

"You. Goody." she said sarcastically

" I was hoping we could talk." I said

"About what?" She asked, "Stefan? Don't worry - I'm off him until he starts treating me better. In fact, you should probably take a page out of my book, if I'm being honest."

"Actually, I was hoping you could tell me about this." I said, taking the picture of Rebekah's name from the cave wall and showing it to her. "I'm curious why you and Klaus have spent a thousand years running from your father."

" I should get back to the girls." Rebekah said, turning around

" I'll just ask Mikael when we wake him." I said making Rebekah turn back around

"You're bluffing." Rebekah said, "You don't know where he is. No one does."

" So then who's rotting in that old cemetery in Charlotte?" I asked her

" If you wake Mikael we are all doomed."

" So then tell me."

" Why do you wanna know?" Rebekah asked

"Why don't you want us to wake him?" I asked

" I need to get back to the girls." Rebekah said before turning around and heading back to the cheerleaders.

* * *

><p>I was on my way up to Ric's apartment to see him and Elena when my phone started to ring. I looked ae caller I.D. and smiled before answering.<p>

"Hey Babe." I said, "What's up?"

"Just checking on Stefan." he replied, " So, how'd it go with Rebekah?"

" She's going to tell me. She is scared of him, Damon." I told him over the phone," I saw her face. I just have to engage a little mean girl power struggle first."

"Make sure she doesn't power struggle you into a wheelchair." Damon said

" Glad you care but I've got this, Damon." I assured him as I walked into Ric's apartment , " If we can figure out a way to kill Klaus, Stefan will be free of his compulsion. So, how does he look?"

"Pasty and pouty."

"He'll have to get over it." I said, "Call me later." then I hung up the phone and turned to Ric and Elena, "Rebekah will come around."

"Are you sure about that?" Ric asked " I mean a thousand year old vampire, I'm sure, is not in the art of patience."

Then I got a text.

_Come over for a chat._

_Rebekah_

"She's a thousand year old vampire, who's joined the cheerleader squad... There is a whole different set of rules at play here." Elena said

" Yes there are." I said showing both of them the text, " We've got this, Ric."

* * *

><p>Elena and I waked into the Salvatore boarding house and saw Rebekah walking around the living room.<p>

"Hey, what's up?" she asked, cheerily

"You invited me over." I said, " To talk?"

"Why did you bring her?" Rebekah asked when seeing Elena

"She's my back up." I explained, "Now, what do you want?"

"All right girls, have at it." She said making some girls come out wearing dresses, "Now twirl."

"You compelled your own private runway show?" Elena asked her

"I need a Homecoming dress." she said, " So what do you think? Pick one, Audrey."

"We're not here to help you shop." I told her, "We're here to talk about why you don't want us to wake up Mikael."

She ran over to one of the girls and extracting her fangs, threatening to bite her.

"I said pick one."

"The blue one." Elena shouted

"Not you." Rebekah said, "Audrey, pick one."

"I'm calling your bluff." I said indifferently

She smirked then grabbed Elena and brought her fangs a few inches above her neck.

"Want to challenge me now?" Rebekah questioned, " Pick one."

"The red one." I blurted out

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" Rebekah said letting go of Elena before turning to the other girls, "Go away. Remember nothing." then she turned back to Elena and I, "You do not threaten me! You two will learn what I allow you to learn. Is that clear?"

We both nodded reluctantly and then Rebekah walked off.

* * *

><p>"How fun is this?" Rebekah said opening the door to Stefan's room and walked in.<p>

"We shouldn't be here." Elena started

" Of course we should." Rebekah said, " Come on, like you've never wanted to snoop." she opened one of Stefan's drawers and pulled out a pair of Stefan's boxers, "Boxer briefs. A lot has changed from the twenties."

"Are you gonnna look through his stuff all night or are you gonna start tell us your story?" I asked

"You two really aren't any fun." Rebekah said, " What do you want to now."

" Well, Elijah said that your father was a landowner in Europe." I said, " How did you guys end up here?"

"My parents had just started a family, when a plague struck their homeland." she began, "They lost a child to it. They wanted to escape and protect their future family from the same fate."

"So, how did you end up here?" Elena asked

" Yeah." I said, "This part of the world hadn't even been discovered yet."

"Not by anyone in your history books." Rebekah told us, "But my mother knew the witch Ayanna, who heard from the spirits of a mystical land where everyone was healthy. Blasted by the gifts of speed and strength; that lead my family here, where we lived amongst those people."

"The werewolves?" Elena asked

"To us they were just our neighbors." she replied, " My family lived in peace with them for over 20 years, during which time my family had more children, including me."

"You make it sound so normal." I said

"It was." she said, " Once a month retreated to the caves beneath the village. The wolves would howl through the night and by morning we'd return home. One full moon, Klaus and my youngest brother Henrik snuck out to watch the men to turn into beasts. That was forbidden. Henrik paid the price. And that was the beginning of the end of peace with our neighbors... And one of the last moments my family had together as humans."

Then my phone started to ring.

"You better get that." Rebekah said, " It'll be Damon checking up on you."

I nodded while picking up the phone.

"Hello?" I answered

"Hey." Damon replied loudly over the noise of really loud music in the background

"Damon, where are you?" I asked him

"No idea but I'm pretty sure I'm way over dressed." he answered, "Still standing?"

"Yes, I'm fine but I can't talk right now." I told him

"I'll be at the bar." I heard Stefan say

"Is that Stefan?" I asked Damon

"What?" Elena chimed in

"Yeah, I kinda went off book but don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

"Damon!" I exclaimed, "How could you let him out?"

"I got this, Audrey." he said before hanging up on me

"He let Stefan out?" Elena asked

"And hung up on me." I said, " He must be out of his mind!"

* * *

><p>"Did you get your fill of snooping yet?" Elena asked Rebekah, who was now laying on Stefan's bed, " Can we get on with the story?"<p>

"Honestly I don't get you two as a couple." Rebekah said to Elena while looking at a picture of here and Stefan.

"Why would you?" Elena asked, "You don't know anything about who he really is."

" I know exactly who he is." Rebekah said, "He's a vampire. We're a predatory species. We don't have time to care about humans and their silly little lives."

"That's not true." I said and they both looked at me, " I mean, is that you did that runway show earlier? Because you don't care about the Homecoming Dance."

I looked over at Elena and she said, "You know, we're just gonna go."

I nodded and we got up and headed to the door.

"You haven't even heard half the story." Rebekah said

I smirked before turning around, "And you are not going to tell it. You're just bored and looking for someone to push around. Find someone else to play with! Maybe you can compel yourself a friend."

"The necklace wasn't Stefan's to give." Rebekah said, "It belonged to the original witch."

"The one that put the hybrid curse on Klaus?" Elena asked

"Not just the hybrid curse." Rebekah explained, "She's the one who turned us into vampires. I'm thirsty. Do you want a drink?"

We headed down the stairs.

"So vampirism was a form of protection?" I asked

"What else wood it be?" Rebekah asked

"A curse." I replied

"My parents only saw a way of keeping their children alive." she said

"Yeah, but if they were so afraid of the werewolves..." I began, " Why not leave?"

"Pride." she said, "My father didn't want to run anymore: He wanted to fight and be superior to the wolves. Where they could bite we had to bite harder. Where they had speed we had to be faster. Agility, strength, senses… Mikeal asked Ayanna but she refused so he told my mother it was in her hands."

"Her hands?" Elena asked, " How could she do anything?"

"Because my mom was also a witch."

"What?" I asked

"The witch of the original family." Rebekah continued, " The original witch."

We entered the study.

"Where do they keep their best vintage?" Rebekah asked walking over to the alcohol

"But if your mother was a witch, then…" I started

"Am I?" She finished my question, " No, a witch is nature's servant, a vampire is an abomination of nature. You can either be one or the other, never both. My mother did this for us. She did not turn."

"How did you turn?" Elena asked her

"My mother called upon the sun for life and the white oak tree, one of nature's eternal objects, for immortality." she told us grabbing a bottle from the alcohol collection, " That night my father offered us wine laced with blood. And then he drove his sword through our hearts."

"He killed you?" I asked

"And he wasn't delicate about it either." she said before breaking the neck of the bottle and throwing it into the fire place.

"It was euphoric! The feeling of power was indescribable. But the witch Ayanna was right about the consequences. The spirits turned on us and nature fought back... For every strength there would be a weakness…" She explained walking closer to us, "The sun became our enemy. It kept us indoors for weeks... Until my mother found a solution."

"But I'm sure there were other problems." I said

Rebekah nodded before continuing, " Neighbors who had opened their homes to us could now keep us out. Flowers at the base of the white oak burned and prevented compulsion."

"Vervain." I concluded

"And the spell decreed that the tree that gave us life could also take it away. So we burned it to the ground . But the darkest consequence was something my parents never anticipated The hunger. Blood... had made us reborn and it was blood that we craved above all else. We could not control it. And with that the predatory species was born…"

* * *

><p>"Why did Mikael start hunting Klaus?" I asked<p>

"When Nik made his first human kill it triggered his werewolf gene." Rebekah said, " With that he became my fathers greatest shame."

"Yeah." Elena said, " Elijah told us this part of the story. Your mother had an affair with one of the werewolf villagers. Klaus wasn't his son."

" She tried to make it right. She put the hybrid curse on Nik to suppress his werewolf side and then she turned her back on him." she said, "But Mikael's greatest weakness as a human was his pride. As a vampire that was magnified. He went on a rampage and killed half the village. Then he came home and killed her."

"Mikael killed your mother?" Elena asked

"He said she broke his heart so he would break hers." she said, "He tore it from her chest as Nik father took off and the rest of my family scattered. Nik stayed so he could help me bury her. He knew I had to say goodbye to my mother. We promised that we would stick together as one. Always and forever."

"Always and forever." I repeated, " Even though he locked you in a coffin for 90 years?"

"We're vampires." she said, " Our emotions are heightened. I'm stubborn, Elijah moral, and Nik has no tolerance for those who betray him. Over a thousand years we've all made that mistake at least once. I've made it several times."

"But you still love him?" Elena asked

"He's my brother. I'm immortal. Should I spend eternity alone instead?" She asked, " You've heard the story, it's time to go."

Neither of us moved.

"I said leave." Rebekah said, "I don't know what you're up to but I'm no longer playing along!"

"We're just looking for one good reason why we shouldn't wake Mikael." I told her

"And I've given you a thousand!" she said, " But you will anyway. I know you want him to help you kill my brother, I'm not stupid."

"It's no secret we want Klaus dead." Elena started, " He has a hold over all of our lives."

"Do what you need! Wake Mikael at your own peril." Rebekah told us, "But make no mistake! If you come after my brother I will rip you apart! And I get my temper from my father! Now leave!"

* * *

><p>After we left the boarding house we met Bonnie and Ric in the cave.<p>

"We filled in what we could." Ric said, " A vampire, werewolf, slaughter, mayhem, etcetera."

Elena pointed to one of the symbols, "That's the white oak tree that was used in the spell to create the vampires. Which means that's when they burned down the tree, destroying the only way they could be killed."

"Okay, so tree equals weapon." Ric said, "But we already knew that. What we're not sure of is this." he said pointing to another picture, "We've got the witch symbol and this thing that looks like a bleeding heart. Upside down figures mean death of some kind."

"Mikael killed the witch by ripping out her heart." I said, " But why is that one connected to the witch's death?"

"We don't know yet." Bonnie said, " We haven't gotten that far."

"Oh my God." I said, " Rebekah doesn't know the real story."

* * *

><p>"I thought I told you to leave." Rebekah said as I entered the house, "Twice."<p>

"How did you know that Mikael killed your mother?" I asked

"Nik was there." she said, "He told me."

"He lied to you."

"And how do you know that?" she asked

"The cave where you carved your family's names is covered in symbols." I explained as I laid some of the pictures of the cave walls down on the table, " The story of your family. How your parents arrived, how they made peace, the spell that turned them into vampires, and this." I laid down the final picture, "This is the symbol for hybrid. It's a combination of the werewolf and the vampire symbols. And this is the one for your mother."

"Her necklace." she said, recognizing the symbol

"And this is the story of her death. The hybrid kilted the original witch." I said, " Not Mikael. Klaus."

"No, he wouldn't ." Rebekah protested

"She put the curs on him." I started, " Made it so he was the only one of his kind and then she rejected him. With the werewolf gene comes aggression and violence. When he turned all of that was heightened. He killed her, Rebekah, and then he made up this entire lie about your father so he wouldn't lose you."

"This means nothing!" she yelled, picking up the pictures and throwing them into the fireplace, "There just stupid drawings, done by stupid people that didn't know anything about my family."

"Then why are you so upset?"

"Why are you doing this to me?" she asked, "I've done nothing to you."

"Klaus killed your mother." I said, " He has a hold on you, on me, on everyone. He has for a thousand years. We have to make it stop."

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" she said, taking me by the throat and pushing me up against a wall, "Don't talk anymore."

After a few seconds Rebekah calmed down and fell to her knees and began to cry.

* * *

><p>I walked into my room, exhausted after the long day, to find Damon laying on my bed.<p>

"Hey."

"We got Mikael." he said as I walked over to the bed

"What? How?"

"No idea. I guess Katherine came through. Plan's in motion." he said, " See. I told you I had it. Now go head. Kick, yell, scream. I'm sure you've been planning your rant all day."

"I'm not gonna yell at you." I told him

"Why not?" he asked, " I went behind your back, freed Stefan, and you know what? It backfired. He's worse then ever but now he's on our side."

"I'm not mad. I'm tired." I said trying to move my comforter from under Damon, " I just want to go to bed."

" You know, I thin Mikael's weapon is a stake because he mentioned something about it."

"Then he must have carved it from the white oak tree before they burned it." I said, giving up and laying next to Damon.

"So I was right." Damon said, " After all that the all led us to Mikael."

"It lead us to more than just that." I said, " I think I got Rebekah on our side too."

"Really? What did you learn from her?"

"I learned that she's just a girl." I said, " That she lost her mom to young and she loves blindly and recklessly, even if it consumers her." I looked eyes with Damon before continuing, "And when all's said and done there's nothing more important than the bond of family."

"Well you should tell that to my brother." Damon said and I laughed

"I'm not mad that you let him out, Damon." I said, turning to turn off the light, " I think you're gonna be the one to save him from himself. It won't be because he loves Elena, it'll be because he loves you."

"Can I tell you the rest tomorrow?" I asked tiredly

"Sure." he said before I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

_**Author's Note**_

_**Well, there you have it, chapter eight. Hoped you liked it. Review and give me your feedback. Next chapter is Homecoming.**_

_**Audrey;D**_


	9. Homecoming

**I do not own the Vampire Diaries of the sexiness that is Damon Salvatore ****L. I only own Audrey and anything else you don't normally see.**

**Chapter Nine-Homecoming**

"Let's say that Mikael followed Audrey in here." Stefan said as he, Damon, Elena and I walked into the living room, "He tried to grab her, so he could use her as bait."

"Then you vervained him?" Elena asked

"No, we vervained him." Damon corrected her, " This guy's an Original, we have to make it realistic."

"Yeah, there's no way Stefan could do it by himself." I added

"Fine." Stefan said, " We vervained him and in the process we discovered that he had a dagger."

"That he planned to use on Rebekah, but instead…" Elena trailed off

"We drove it though his heart." Stefan finished

"And what happens when he wants to see Mikael's body?" I asked

"Good point." Damon said, "You, my brother, have been compelled to do what Klaus says. So the idea is to lure him back here and kill him and the last thing we need is you getting tripped up and tongue-tied."

"Well don't look at me." Stefan told, " I'm just in charge of getting him back here."

"Klaus is smart." I pointed out, " If we tell him Mikael's dead, he'll want proof."

"Then I shall be dead." Mikael said, walking into the room

"What if he wants to see you in person?" Elena asked

"That means our plan is working." Mikael said, "Klaus will absolutely want to see my body. You lure him here, I'll kill him."

"With that?" Stefan said about the silver dagger in Mikael's hand, " Those daggers won't work on him."

"I'm in possession of a stake fashioned from the wood of the ancient white oak tree." Mikael informed us, "The one that left these ashes when it burned."

"Where is it?" Stefan asked

"Not here." Mikael replied, "Knowing it's location is my insurance policy."

"Against what?" Damon asked

"You leaving this in my heart." he replied, "You see, a vampire can't dagger an Original without dying so it lands on one of you two."

"You want us to actually dagger you?" Elena asked

"Klaus will leave nothing to chance, especially when it comes to trust."

"I'll do it." I said, taking the dagger, "Sorry about this." I drove the stake through his heart and he fell to the floor, dead.

"Call Klaus and tell him his fathers dead." Damon told Stefan

Stefan dialed the number while taking a seat in one of the chairs.

"You're fathers dead." He said to Klaus, " Oh, my mistake. Not your actual father and not dead. Mikael, daggered. What should I do with the body?"

Klaus replied but I couldn't make out what he was saying.

"Well, he's here. Come by whenever." Stefan said, "It's true. I saw it with my own eyes. That's not a problem. She's right here."

Then he got up and handed the phone to Rebekah.

"Hello, Nik." she answered, "It's true. He's finally out of our lives for good. I miss you. I'm miserable here. Good. I'll see you then. Bye." she hung up the phone, "He bought it. He's coming home."

"Now," Damon started, " was that easy or what?"

I rolled my eyes before bending down next to Mikael.

"Let's just get this over with." I said before removing the dagger from his chest.

* * *

><p>"I hate every thing in my closet." Elena said looking for a Homecoming Dress, " I have nothing to wear for Homecoming."<p>

"That's why you buy something a week in advance like me." I said from Elena's bed where I was sitting with Bonnie

"So don't go." Bonnie suggested, "Let's stay home, order takeout and overanalyze ancient hieroglyphic things with Alaric."

" As much as I love Ricky boy we have to go." I said, "Caroline will kill us if we don't ."

"Caroline actually has a date." Bonnie said

"You know that you can talk to us about Jeremy, right?" Elena told her

"I don't need to talk about it." Bonnie said, "He fell in love with his ghost girlfriend and lied about it. What's done is done."

"You have to talk about it." I said

"Yeah, I'm mad at him too." Elena added

"Your mad at your little brother and cousin." she said to us, " You'll yell at him, teach him a life lesson. You can't really be mad like I'm mad."

"Bonnie…" I started

"And you shouldn't have to be." she interrupted me, " He's family. So no, I really can't talk to you guys."

* * *

><p>"We can't trust Rebekah not to turn on us." I told Damon as I grabbed some empty grenade bottles from his bed.<p>

"Oh really." Damon said from the bathroom, " Cause these Original vampires are usually so reliable."

"Rebekah may be mad now but Klaus is her brother."

"Her lying, mamma killing, dagger happy, brother." he said, " Wolfsbane's ready."

I entered the bathroom and handed Damon one of the grenade bottles.

"There are two many things that can go wrong with this plan." I said, "Too many people that can make it go wrong."

"That's why I'm forming a secret contingency plan." Damn said, smirking

"Really? What is it?"

"Well, if I told you, it wouldn't be a secret." he said nodded towards the door.

I looked over and saw Stefan walk into the room.

"I need to borrow a tie." he said

"You have your own ties." Damon told him

"I'm a 162 year old and I'm going to a Homecoming Dance." Stefan explained, "I need better ties."

"You could not go." I suggested

"I'm compelled to protect you." Stefan said, "And if I look at your track record for high school dances, it's pretty tragic. With my luck you'd go and get yourself murdered by the Homecoming Queen."

" If we look closer at my track record for high school dances we can see that at one of them I was only trying to help Elena and at he other I was being pursued by your crazy hybrid boss."

Then I turned my attention to the grenade in my hand but before I could do anything with it Damon grabbed it, "Ah, no."

"I know how to do it." I protested, "Alaric taught me."

"Audrey, if this thing blows up in our faces just remember only one of us heals quickly."

"Please tell me you have a better plan then wolvesbane grenades." Stefan said

"Please tell me you have a better plan then your face." I told him earning looks form him and Damon, "Sorry, I couldn't help it."

"Never you mind, brother." Damon replied, " The less you know the better."

"My freedom from Klaus rests entirely upon you two executing your plan perfectly." Stefan said, " So excuse me if I'm a little cynical."

"You're the one we should be worried about." I said, "If Klaus asks you one wrong question this whole thing falls apart."

"You do have reason to worry, but if I look back in our history of epic plan failures, it's usually because one of us let our humanity get in the way." Stefan responded, " If we're taking odds on how this thing goes down, it's certainly not gonna be me who screws it up. I'll see you at Homecoming. I can't wait."

Then Stefan headed out of Damon's room and I turned to Damon.

"Would you be angry if I killed your brother?"

He thought about it for a minute before saying, " From the way he's acting I'll probably be the one killing him." he said, smirking

I smiled and gave him a quick kiss before continuing to work on the weapons for tonight.

* * *

><p>I was walking to the kitchen to grab something to eat when I ran into Elena.<p>

"Hey, Elena." I said

"Hey, Audrey." Elena said, " I have to tell you something."

"What's up ?" I asked her

She pulled out her phone and typed something before showing it to me.

_We need to get rid of Rebekah._

_She can't be trusted._

"I agree." I said before getting an idea, "Can I borrow the necklace Stefan gave you?"

She nodded before taking it out of her purse and handing it to me.

"Thanks." I said, turning around and heading up to Rebekah's room.

* * *

><p>"Getting a head start, huh?" I asked Rebekah<p>

"Embarrassing truth," she said, "this is my first high school dance."

"Ever?"

"I don't really had time for high school before. Nik and I were always moving around, running." she explained, "Anyway, I didn't want to leave anything to chance. Have you heard anymore from him?"

"No. But I'm sure when he does show up he'll do it with flair."

"And Damon and my father are ready with their plan?" she asked me

"Yes."

"Don't tell me." she said, " I just want to go to the dance and leave the rest to Mikael."

" I know it's really hard." I told her, "So thank you for helping us get Klaus back into town."

"Just be careful. I've been running for a thousand years for a reason." she said, " Mikael is not a good person and he is not to be trusted. No one in my family can."

"Are you okay?" I asked, seeing tears beginning to form in Rebekah's eyes

"I've spent my whole life loving and hating my brother with equal measure. I never thought I would be the one to help drive a stake through his heart." she explained, "No tears, don't want to ruin my make-up." She turned to the mirror, "How do I look?"

"You look amazing." I told her, "But you're missing something."

I pulled the necklace out of my pocket and held it up so she could see it.

"My mothers necklace!" Rebekah exclaimed

"You should wear it tonight. May I?"

She nodded and I walked up and put the necklace around her neck.

"Thank you." Rebekah said

Then she gasped as I took the dagger I had found on the way up and drove it though her heart before she began to turn gray.

"I'm so sorry." I said, " I can't leave anything to chance."

* * *

><p>"In the back." Damon said, covering Rebekah's body with a sheet, "Harsh."<p>

"It had to be done." I said from my spot on the bed, "Rebekah was never going to be completely on our side."

"I'm not judging you." Damon said, sitting next to me, "It's very Katherine of you."

"Not the way to make me feel better about myself, Damon." I said

"It was a complement. Sort of."

"Stefan's right." I said, resting my head on Damon's shoulder, "Someone's gonna let their humanity get in the way and screw this whole thing up. It's probably gonna be me."

"Audrey, you just daggered someone." Damon said, "You'll be fine."

"Yeah, but I feel bad about it." I explained, " I care too much, that's the problem, Damon. I'm the weak link."

"If it makes you feel any better, she's not really dead." he tried to comfort me

"Do you trust him?" I asked, " Mikael?"

"No."

"What about Stefan?"

"Not as long as he's under Klaus's control." he replied

"Then we need another plan."

"I know what to do." Damon said, " Your just not gonna like it."

I sat up and looked at Damon.

"Why not?" I asked hesitantly

"Because when this goes down, I don't want you having any part of it."

"What does that mean?"

"Do you trust me?" Damon asked, dodging the question

"Yes." I told him honestly

"Then you have nothing to worry about."

* * *

><p>"So does this mean I don't have to go?" I asked Care over the phone after she told me the gym had been flooded, canceling the Homecoming Dance<p>

"You wish." Care said, "No, Tyler's moving the party to his house."

"Kegs and beer pong for the Homecoming? That's- different…"

"Just say you're still coming." Care said

"I'll see you there." I said, hanging up and taking a seat on the couch.

Less then a minute later there was a knock on the door.

"ELENA!" I yelled not wanting to get up

"What?" she asked, walking into the living room

"Door."

"Really? You couldn't get up and answer the door?"

"No." I said, shaking my head

She rolled her eyes before going to answer the door.

* * *

><p>I went up to my room in the Salvatore Boarding house to get ready for the dance. I quickly put on my strapless purple dress, black leather jacket, and black pumps. Then I went to find Damon.<p>

"Hello…Damon?" I said entering his room

No answer. I looked around his room but didn't find him. I was about to leave when I was pushed up against one of the walls by Damon.

"Damon, what the h*ll!" I exclaimed

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked me

"The dance."

"What part of I don't want you having any part of tonight, didn't you understand?"

"The part where I don't go to the dance." I told him

"You're not going." he said, forcefully

"Yes, I am." I said, " Look, this can go one of two ways. One, I go to the dance by myself. Or, two," I began to smile, "you can take me. Either way I am not staying here."

"Fine! I'll take you." he said, "But first we have to take care of Stefan."

"Are you gonna let me go now?" I asked him

"Not just yet." he said, smirking, before bring his lips down to mine.

Damon placed his hands on my hips and I put my hands in his hair holding him closer to me as our kiss deepened. Our lips moved in sync for awhile before I pulled away.

"We can finish this later." I said, making him groan, "But right now, we have a plan to see through."

"Okay," he said putting an arm around my shoulder and leading me downstairs.

* * *

><p>"Did my daughter go to the dance?" Mikael asked as he walked into the living room<p>

"Yep. You missed the photo up." I told him, "Did you get the stake?"

"I did." he said

"I don't think we'll take your word for it." Damon told him, " No offense to your honor an all."

"None taken." he said taking out the stake and showing it to us

"Fancy." Damon commented, "May I?"

"It's the only weapon on this earth that can kill an original." Mikael said putting it in his jacket, " So I think I'll hold on to it. No offence…"

"I'd offer you a drink…" Damon started

"But Katherine tells us you're a vampire on the rocks kind of person." I finished

"Technically , Damon, you could still offer…"

"Well this just got awkward." I said, leaning on the back of the couch

"Why feed on vampires?" Damon asked Mikael curiously, "Don't tell me it's for the smooth aftertaste."

"I had a hand in creating vampires, but bloodlust was never my intention." Mikael explained, "Over the centuries I learnt to feed from the predator, not the innocent."

"Good intentions but still really creepy." I said, "It's like cannibalism."

"Change of plans." Stefan said, coming into the room, "Klaus is back. He's at the Lockwood's and he wants your body ," he pointed to Mikael, "delivered to his doorstep."

"I'm afraid he'll be in for a colossal disappointment." Mikael said

"Well he's certainly not coming here." Stefan said, "I hope your plan didn't depend on that."

"Didn't depend on that." Damon told him

"But you do have a plan, right?" Stefan asked

"We have a plan." I started, " It just doesn't involve you."

Then Mikael attacked Stefan and started to feed on him. After a few moments Mikael let go of Stefan and he fell to the ground, unconscious.

"You couldn't just break his neck?" Damon asked Mikael

"Well, that certainly occurred to me." Mikael replied wiping the blood from around his mouth.

* * *

><p>When Damon and I arrived to the Lockwood's some random guy came up to us.<p>

"Invite only, vampire." he said to Damon

"Here's my RSVP." he said before ripping out his heart, "Hybrid."

Then we continued on our way. When we walked inside we found Tyler right away and pulled him into the study.

"As the host you should know that hybrids don't make the best first impression." I told Tyler

"Whatever move you're making, Klaus is gonna be ready for you." Tyler warned us, " He'll kill everyone at this party if he has to."

"Tell that to someone who cares." Damon said before attacking Tyler

Tyler tried to fight back and almost bit Damon. Damon took out the stake Mikael had shown us early and was about to stake Tyler when they both started holding there heads and groaning in pain. I turned around and saw that Bonnie was doing that supernatural migraine thing.

"What the h*ll wrong with you?" Damon asked when she had stopped, "You weren't supposed to witchy migraine me."

"In her defense you weren't supposed to kill Tyler." I told him

"He tried to bite me!"

"What is that?" Bonnie asked, gesturing to the white oak stake

"Nothing." Damon said

"Oh my God, is that the …"

"Shhh!" I told her before whispering, "They're everywhere."

"Why do you have it , Damon?" Bonnie asked

"Because I'm the only one that can get into the house."

* * *

><p>"So now what do we do?" I asked Damon as we walked around the Lockwood property<p>

"We wait for Mikael."

"Well while we wait would you like to dance with me?" I asked him, smiling

"No."

My smile was replaced with a frown, "Fine, then I'll go find someone that will."

When I tried to walk away Damon grabbed my hand and pulled me into his arms.

"You didn't let me finish." he said, "I wouldn't like to dance with you, I would love to."

"Good because finding someone else to dance with would have been really awkward." I said, my smile returning

As we walked outside to where the other peope were dance the band started to play a slow song. Damon put his hands on my hips the same time I wrapped my arms around his neck and then we began to sway to the music. I rested my head on his chest and tried to soak in the moment.

"You know we could do this more often if you would just tell everyone we were dating." Damon said

"I will." I told him, "After all this Klaus stuff is over, I will."

"Good because this whole 'just friends' façade is not as easy as it looks."

"Trust me I know." I laughed before adding, " I love you."

"I love you too."

"Sorry to interrupt." I heard Mikael say and we both pulled apart, "I believe we have a job to do."

"Yeah have fun with that." I said before turning to Damon, "Don't get killed, okay?"

"You got it."

With that he and Mikael walked off.

* * *

><p>I was walking around and listened to My Morning Jacket when a short woman with a pixie style haircut came up to me.<p>

"Are you Audrey?" she asked

"Um… yeah." I said, "Do I know you?"

"No." then she grabbed me and put a hand over my mouth before pulling me away from everyone.

* * *

><p>I struggled to no avail as the chick brought me to the front of the Lockwood mansion where I could see Mikael standing just outside the door talking to someone.<p>

"Be quite or I will snap your neck." the girl warned me and I quickly became silent

"True." I heard Klaus agree to something I had missed, "But it'll make a h*ll of a party game. I'll I have to do is rub these two fingers together and they'll pounce."

"The big bad wolf." Mikael said, "You haven't changed. Still hiding behind your playthings like a coward. Only, you forget, they may be sired by you but they're still have vampire, and can be compelled by me."

With that I was pushed into Mikael's arms.

"Come out here and face me Niklaus." Mikael said, "Or she dies."

"Go ahead." Klaus told him, "Kill her."

"No, Klaus." I pleaded, "He'll do it."

"If she dies this lot will be the last of your abominations." Mikael informed him

"I don't need them." Klaus said, " I just need to be rid of you."

" To what end, Nicklaus?" Mikael asked, " So you can live forever, with no one at your side ? Nobody cares about you anymore, boy!" he spit out, "What do you have other than those whose loyalty you forced? No one."

"I'm calling your bluff father." Klaus said coldly, "Kill her."

"Come out and face me, you little coward, and I won't have to." Mikael said angrily

"My whole life you've underestimated me." Klaus started, " If you kill her you lose your leverage. So go ahead. Go on. Kill her. Come on, old man. Kill her."

"Your impulse, Niklaus." Mikael said, "It has and will forever be the thing that keeps you from being truly great."

Then he stabbed me in the side with something and I fell to the ground in pain. Almost instantly someone's wrist was shoved in my mouth and all I could taste was blood. I looked up and saw that it was Katherine and a look of disgust came to my face.

"Yeah, I don't much like this either but I promised to help." she said before taking back her wrist and standing up.

"Katherine!" Mikael exclaimed

She smirked before turning to the group of hybrids and saying, "Boom." before throwing wolfsbane grenades at them. I got up and looked into the Lockwood's house to see Damon stake Klaus in the stomach. Then Stefan came out of no where and tackled Damon.

"What are you doing!" Damon yelled

Klaus took the stake from his stomach and stabbed Mikael in the heart causing him to burst into flames and die.

"What the h*ll did you do, Stefan?" I asked running over to Damon who was still on the ground.

"He's earned his freedom." Klaus replied before turning to Stefan, "Thank you my friend. you no longer have to do as I say. Your free."

Without grabbing the attention of Klaus or Stefan, Damon grabbed me and we got the h*ll out of there.

* * *

><p>"How did this happen?" I asked Damon when we had gotten back to the boarding house and in Damon's room<p>

"We thought of everything, Audrey!" Damon shouted, "Klaus having hybrids. Mikael turning on us. We even brought in Katherine. Anything that could have gone wrong we were prepared!"

"I don't understand." I said, " Stefan wanted Klaus dead! More than anything! That's what we were counting on."

"We blew it."

"Where's Katherine?" I asked

"She ran for the hills the minute things got bad." Damon said before taking a sip of his drink, "And who blames her? Klaus would have crushed her. I had him, Audrey. I had Klaus. This could have all been over!" Then he threw his glass into the fire place.

"Hey. Damon." I said taking is face in my hands, "Hey, listen to me. We'll survive this. We always survive. Trust me."

"We're never getting Stefan back." Damon said, "You know that right?"

"Then we'll have to let him go." I replied, "Okay? We'll let him go."

Damon nodded. Then his phone started to ring.

"Not interested in a play by play of our failure right now, Katherine." he answered

"I'm just calling to say goodbye." I heard Katherine say, " I don't know what to tell you. You had a good plan Damon. And that's high praise coming from me."

"That's not very comforting at the moment." Damon told her, " You're going back into hiding?"

"At least my life isn't boring." she replied, "Goodbye, Damon."

"Take care of yourself, Katherine." he said before hanging up and turning back to me

"We will get through this, Damon." I assured him before kissing him

* * *

><p>That night, after I had fallen asleep in Damon's bed I had a dream slash vision.<p>

_Klaus was on the phone and talking to Stefan._

"_Stefan, miss me already?" Klaus asked him_

"_I'm just calling to thank you for my freedom." Stefan said and the vision shifted to show him standing in a house._

"_Oh, I like to believe I'm a man of my word." Klaus said_

"_You took everything from me Klaus." Stefan told him_

"_Stefan let bygones be bygones." Klaus said, "Trust me, resentment gets old."_

"_You know what never gets old?" Stefan asked, "Revenge."_

_Then Klaus walked up to a moving truck and opened it revealing an empty truck. _

"_No." Klaus said, furiously_

"_What's the matter Klaus." Stefan said, and I could see that he was surrounded by coffins, "Missing something?"_

"_What are you doing?" Klaus asked him_

"_Just enjoying my freedom."_

"_I will kill you and anyone you have ever met."_

"_You do that and you will never see your family again." Stefan warned him, "I wonder Klaus, as someone who has been one step ahead for one thousand years, were you prepared for this?"_

**Author's Note**

**Thank you to Grapejuice101 for her awsomeness**

**I'm so sorry it t****ook so long to update. I have been very busy do to finals week so I haven't have much time to work on this but I hope this fifteen page chapter makes up for it. Please review and tell me what you think because feedback makes it easier for me to know what to write which helps me write chapters quickly which results in faster updates. So you see reviews = faster writing = fast updates. So review. Go ahead, review.**

**Since I was especially bored this week lets have a chat with some of my favorite characters.**

**Me: So I was right this whole time.**

**Audrey: What are you blabbering on about?**

**Me: Oh, just the fact that you were always in love with Damon**

**Damon: How couldn't she be, I'm me.**

**Me: Good point. * Smiling flirtatiously at Damon***

**Audrey: I saw that, you keep your hands off of my man.**

**Me: Make me.**

**Audrey: I am half Jamaican and half Virginian I will kick you're butt.**

**Me: Well I am also half Jamaican and fully the writer of this story so I can easily break you two up.**

**Damon: Ladies, ladies, no need to fight over me.**

**Me: You're right. It's my own fault for hooking you two up in the first place. But I am happy for you guys.**

**Audrey: Thanks for putting us together, I really appreciate that.**

**Me: I'm sure you do. *rolls eyes* Now lets say goodbye so you two can do romantic coupley things.**

**Me, Damon, Audrey: Goodbye readers.**

**Damon: * Doing the annoyingly hot eye thing* and make sure to review.**


	10. The New Deal

**Chapter Ten-The New Deal**

_I walked towards the old witch house not completely sure what I was going there for but knowing it was there. I continued walking into the house and to the basement where four coffins were placed around the room, three normal looking ones and one that was made of what looked like granite. I walked toward the fourth coffin and opened it to see Klaus. I was about to get a closer look when I heard someone moving around behind me. I turned around and saw …_

I sat up in my bed, waking up from the same dream I had been having for days now. I sighed, got off the bed, and starting to get dressed.

* * *

><p>When I walked into the kitchen I saw Ric making coffee.<p>

"Ric, I swear you are an angle sent from heaven." I told him, grabbing two coffee cups from the cupboard and setting the next to the coffee maker, "Where are Jer and Elena?"

"Elena went to Bonnie's and I'm going to meet Jeremy at the Grill when his shift starts." Ric said

I guess Ric was the person I would tell first about Damon and I.

"Ric, if I tell you something do you think you can keep it from Elena for awhile?" I asked him

" I don't know…" he started cautiously

"Please, Ric." I said, "It's important that you keep it from Elena."

"Fine. I'll keep from Elena." he said, reluctantly

"Good." I said, " Okay, um… Damon and I are dating."

Ric's eye's widened in shock, "What?"

"I said…"

"No I heard what you said. You're dating Damon. " he said, cutting me off, " How long has this been going on?"

" About a month." I told him

"Wow." he said, "I think I may need some time to process this."

"Take all the time you need." I said heading towards the door, "I'm gonna go for a run. And Ric…"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for keeping this from Elena." I said, grabbing my keys and walking out to my car

* * *

><p>As I was jogging around Mystic Falls I felt someone watching me. I looked behind me and saw a man jogging right behind me. I shock off the suspicious feeling I got and continued jogging after a while I stopped and noticed the man was no longer behind me. I sighed in relief before facing the other direction and almost running into the same guy.<p>

"Excuse me." he said with a smile, "I should have watched where I was going."

"Don't worry about it." I told him

"Have a nice day." he said before starting off in the other direction.

* * *

><p>"I feel like I'm going crazy." I told Bonnie and Elena as we sat in Mystic Grill, "I'm totally paranoid all the time."<p>

"You have the right to be." Elena said, "Klaus is still out there and he knows you tried to kill him."

"So why hasn't he made a move?" I asked, " There has been no sign of him."

"Join the crazy club." Bonnie told me, "Every time I close my eyes I have that nightmare. On repeat."

"The same one?" Elena asked her

"Wait." I said, "What dream?"

"There are four coffins." Bonnie explained

"And Klaus is in one of them?" I asked her

"How did you know?"

"I've been having that same dream for days." I told her

"What if it's not just a dream." Elena said, " What if it's a vision or a witch dream."

"It's probably just stress. I'll figure it out. What about Stefan?" Bonnie asked Elena trying to change the subject, " Has there been any sign of him?"

"He betrayed us Bonnie." Elena replied, " The Stefan we know is gone."

"How is Damon handling it?"

"Damon is…Damon." I answered Bonnie before noticing Damon at the bar, " I'm gonna go. I'll see you guys later."

Then I stood up and headed over to Damon.

* * *

><p>"I'll give you a choice." I herd Damon say as I walked up to him and Ric, " Bloody Mary, Screwdriver, brunch in a bottle."<p>

Ric didn't say anything.

"Come on, Ric." Damon protested, " I can't drink all this by myself. Well I can but someone's getting naked."

"Is that a promise?" I asked with a smirk before turning to Ric, "Hi, Ric."

"Hey." he replied

I turned back to Damon and said, " Hey babe." before kissing him quickly so I wouldn't get caught by Bonnie and Elena.

"That's definitely weird." Ric commented making me laugh

"Man I can't believe you're making me drink alone." Damon said

"Yeah ,Ric, how rude." I added

"I'm busy." Ric responded

"It's the eve of Klausagedon and you're doing homework." Damon stated

"This may come as a shock but I'm not here to hang out with you." Ric said, "I'm here to see Jeremy, who is an hour late for his shift."

"Jeremy, Jeremy, Jeremy." I said shaking my head

"Kids today." Damon said, " Where are their values?"

Ric put a mid-term paper one the counter and it had a big F on it.

"That's his mid-term paper." Ric said, "He copied it straight from the internet. Didn't even try to hide it."

"I'm gonna kill him." I said, " I mean, I was being chased by some creepy hybrid and still wrote my own mid-term paper."

"Did you say you were looking for Jeremy?" the bartender asked, "As in Jeremy Gilbert?"

"Yeah." Ric answered

"He was fired last week." she said before walking away

"Oops." Damon said, making me hit him in the arm

* * *

><p>"Jeremy the minute you get this, call me." I said to Jer's voice mail before hanging up, " Unbelievable."<p>

"You're feisty when you're mad." Damon said, throwing darts

"It's not that I'm mad." I told him, " I'm worried."

"Why? Because he lost his job at the Grill?" he asked, "I think he'll survive, Audrey."

"He's spiraling." I explained, "Ever since Bonnie broke up with him he's moody and he doesn't really talk to anyone."

"It's typical teenager." Damon said

"Who see's ghosts and has lost everyone that he cares about." I said, " Wow, I just described myself."

"He hasn't lost everyone." Damon said, walking to the dart board to retrieve his darts, " He still has you and Elena."

As he made his was back to me he tripped over one of the chairs but caught himself before he could fall on his face.

"Are you okay?" I asked, concerned

"What makes you think that I'm not okay?"

"Well you're day drunk." I said, "It's not your most attractive look."

"Hmm, what is my most attractive look." he said walking up to me

"I haven't decided yet." I told him with a smile, "But this is definitely my least favorite."

"I'll see if I can make any improvements." he said, smirking

"Well, what do we have here?" I heard a familiar British voice say

I looked behind me and saw Klaus.

"Klaus." I said

"You're gonna do this in the Grill? In front of everyone?" Damon said standing between Klaus and I , "It's a little beneath you don't you think?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Klaus said, " I just came down to my local pub to grab a drink with a mate."

Then the guy that had been following me earlier came up behind him.

"Get a round in would you Tony." Klaus said and Tony headed to the bar

"I'm surprised you stuck around town long enough for happy hour." Damon said

"My sister seems to be missing." Klaus told us, "Need to sort that out."

"Cute blonde, bombshell, psycho?" Damon said, "Shouldn't be to hard to find."

"Truth is I've grown to rather like your little town." Klaus admitted, "Think I might fancy a home here. Oh I imagine you're wondering how this is affect you. The answer is: not in the slightest." Then he picked up the darts and made a bull's-eye before turning back to us, "As long as I get what I want and everyone behaves themselves you can go on living your little lives however you choose. You have my word."

"What more could you possible want?" I asked him, outraged

"Oh for starters you could tell me where I could find Stefan." Klaus replied

"Stefan skipped town the second he saved your arse." Damon said

"Well that's a shame." Klaus said, "Your brother stole from me. I need him found so I can take back what's mine."

"That sounds like a Klaus and Stefan problem." I told Klaus

Klaus started to come at me but Damon once again stood between us.

Klaus smiled before saying, "Well this is me broadening the scope, sweetheart."

* * *

><p>After Klaus left I went home to help Ric and Elena with dinner.<p>

"Are you okay?" Ric asked Elena

"Vampires, Werewolves, Hybrids, no problem." she replied, "My rebellious brother, I'm worried."

"Proof." Ric started, "You're still human."

"I was beginning to think she had become a robot or something." I added with a laugh as the door opened and Jeremy walked in.

"Just in time." Elena said to him, "We're cooking."

"Sorry, just passing through." Jer said grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge

"Oh, wait a little." Ric told him, "Stay in and have a meal like a typical atypical family."

"Why?" Jer asked

"Maybe because you got fired and didn't tell anyone about it." I said

"Look can we just do this later?" Jer asked, " I made plans with Tyler. He's right outside."

"Wait. When did you start hanging out with Tyler Lockwood?" Ric asked him

"I don't know." Jer said, "Does it matter?"

"Yeah, Jeremy, it matters." Elena said, "He was sired by Klaus. He's dangerous."

"He can still hear you. He is right outside." Jer pointed out, "Besides you of all people are gonna lecture me on who I can and can't hang out with?"

"Watch it with the attitude, Jeremy." I warned him

" Whatever, this is lame. Tyler's waiting." he said before trying to leave but I grabbed his arm

"Oh no, no, no." I said, "You're not going anywhere. Especially with Tyler."

Jer looked over at Ric for help.

" I'm with them on this, sorry Jer."

"Fine. You want me to stay in? Let's all stay in then." he said, " Yo, Tyler. Come on in."

"Jeremy !" Elena exclaimed as Tyler opened the door and walked right in

* * *

><p>After Tyler had been invited in we all gathered around the table.<p>

"Thanks." Tyler said after Jer had grabbed glass of water

"This is weird." I said, "Klaus's hybrids are stalking me and now you're just sitting here in our kitchen."

"Look, maybe I should go." Tyler suggested

"No, stay." Jer told him, "You're not doing anything."

"Unless you have to, you know, check in with your hybrid master." Elena said

"It's not like that Elena." Tyler said

"Tell me Tyler, what is the difference between being sired and being compelled?" Ric asked him

"Compulsion that's just mind control." he said, "Like hypnosis. And being sired is…it's like faith. You do something because you believe it's the right thing."

"So you believe serving Klaus is the right thing?" I asked Tyler

"I don't serve him." Tyler argued, " Klaus saved me from a curse that was ruining my life. I owe him for that."

"What if he asked you to jump off a bridge?" Ric asked him

"He wouldn't." Tyler said, " And even if he did I'd be fine. I'm a hybrid."

"Okay." I started, "What if he asked you to rip your heart out?"

"Again, he wouldn't."

"What if he did." I insisted

"I don't know! Then I'd rip out my heart!" he said surprising us all, "You guys sound like Caroline, getting all freaked out about something you don't understand."

" You're right Tyler." Elena said, " I don't understand. Klaus has terrorized every single one of us and you're just blindly loyal to him."

"You're over thinking it." he said, "I can still make my own decisions."

Jeremy's phone started to ring and he got up to answer it after he was done he came back and sat down .

"What was that about?" I asked him

"It was nothing."

"I got to go." Tyler said, " Thanks for the food offer, but…"

"Next time." Ric offered

Tyler nodded before getting up and leaving.

"That was illuminating." Ric said as we headed towards the sink

"So, Tyler Lockwood is a lunatic that who had access to our house." I said

"I mean this whole sire- bond- thing is...wild." Ric said, "I don't even think Tyler is fully aware of what little reason he is behind what he's saying."

"Great." Elena said, " That's a wonderful influence for you Jer."

We all looked around to look at Jeremy but he was gone.

"Jeremy?" I asked looking around

"That's his ring." Ric said, looking at the ring sitting on the table.

"Where did he go?" Elena asked

We all walked outside and saw Jeremy standing in the middle of the road.

"Jeremy?" I said, "What is he doing?"

Suddenly a car turned the corner and started speeding towards Jeremy.

"Oh, my God." Elena said, "Jeremy!"

"Jeremy move!" Ric shouted before running into the road and pushing him out of the way just in time but unfortunately he got run over.

Elena and I ran over to Ric and I saw that he was wearing his ring. I turned to look at the driver and saw that it was Tony, the hybrid from earlier.

"There I go again." he said, "Bumping into people."

He rolled up his window before driving away.

"He's gonna be okay." I told Elena before turning to Jer, "Are you okay?"

"I don't understand." he said

"Who was that on the phone earlier?" Elena asked him

"It was Klaus."

"You were compelled Jer." I told him, "We gotta get him inside. Help me."

* * *

><p>"How is he?" Damon asked, walking into the house<p>

"Dead." I said, "But he had his ring on. Klaus's hybrid hit him. Now we just wait."

"Jeremy, why weren't you on vervain?" Damon asked him, " Where's you're bracelet?"

"I don't know." Jer said looking down at his wrist

"It was Tyler." Elena said, "It had to have been. That's why he's been hanging out with you. To get you off the vervain."

"Klaus is trying to send us a message." Damon said, "He wants us to find Stefan who stole his coffins full of his dead family members."

"Coffins?" I asked

"Yep. So all we have to do is find four coffins and viola, no one else on your family Christmas list needs to die."

"Wait. that's your big plan?" Jer asked, "To steal back four dead originals so this evil hybrid doesn't kill me and everyone else we know?"

"You got a better idea?" Damon asked him

"Yeah. Let's get the h*ll out of here." he said, " Pack our bags and go."

"Hey, Jeremy calm down." Elena told him

"I'm not gonna calm down Elena." Jer said, " This happens every time, no matter what we do! You get on my case about school and work. Who cares? None of us are gonna make it out of this town alive."

Jer walked past us and headed out of the house.

"He said he wanted his family back." I said

"No. No." Damon started, " I know what you're thinking and the answer is no."

"If we give him Rebekah…" I started

"Yeah, then Klaus un-daggers her, first thing she does is kill you." Damon told me, "Frying pan, fire. Not an option."

"Klaus's coffins." Elena said, "How many did you say there were?"

"Four." Damon replied

"Just like in your dream, Audrey." Elena said, "I'm guessing it's not just stress."

"Well, if my dream is right, then the coffins are at the witch house." I said, "Anyone up for a field trip?"

* * *

><p>"Bonnie said that this place lost all it's mojo." Damon said as we walked towards the witch house<p>

"The dead witches were angry at her for bringing Jeremy back to life." Elena told him, "I guess now they have something they want her and Audrey to know."

"That's why I hate witches." Damon said as we walked into the house, "They're so fickle and passive aggressive."

"That's definitely what you should say as we walk into a house full of the sprits of a hundred dead witches." I said

"Stefan?" Elena asked

"Come on, Stef." Damon said before his skin started to burn and he sped into the shadows, " Really? Still?"

"What?" Elena asked him

"Witchy spirits aren't exactly a big fan." Damon explained, " And they use their juju to screw with my daylight ring."

"Get out." I heard a female voice yell

"They say you should leave." I said, walking over to Damon, " Why don't you just go wait outside?"

"Audrey…" Damon started

"We're not leaving until we know if he's here." I said, "We'll be fine."

"Come on, Audrey." Elena said as she began to walk off and I quickly followed her

"It's this way." I told her as I started walking down the stairs and into the basement

"Stefan?" Elena asked as we walked into the room where I had seen the coffins

"Go away." Stefan said from behind us, " Neither of you should be here."

"Stefan, we need you're help." Elena told him, "You need to give Klaus his family back."

"Oh, really? Is that what I need to do?" Stefan asked sarcastically

"Klaus compelled Jeremy to stand in front of a speeding car." I told Stefan, "Don't you get it, Stefan? He's not gonna stop until he gets what he wants."

" Audrey, stop talking." Stefan said, "I'm not giving Klaus anything."

"Are you listening?" Elena asked him, " He's going to kill Jeremy."

"That's not my problem."

Fed up, Elena smacked him across the face.

"You can go to h*ll." she said before leaving

I just shook my head at him before walking after Elena.

* * *

><p>"That didn't go over well." Damon said when we got out of the witch house<p>

"Don't even start." Elena said

"Let me talk to him." he suggested

"You can't get in, Damon." I snapped, "The witches won't let you."

"Here." he said grabbing my hand and giving me his keys, "Take my car keys. You two go deal with Jeremy and I'll deal with Stefan."

I nodded and Damon turned and headed back towards the house.

"Come on." I said, turning towards Elena, "Let's go home."

Then we headed back to Damon's car

* * *

><p>When we got back home we saw Ric getting off the couch.<p>

"Ric, hey." Elena greeted, "When did you return to the living?"

"Just a few minutes ago." he replied, "How's Jer?"

"Hating us. Hating life." I told him, " I hate that we can't even have a family dinner without someone dying before dessert." I saw Ric stumble a bit, "Are you okay?"

He coughed into his hand and when he pulled his hand away from his mouth it was covered with blood.

"Oh, my God." Elena said

"Something's wrong." Ric said, "The ring."

Then he collapsed and I ran over to him.

"Elena, call 911." I said before turning back to Ric, " Ric, hey."

A few minutes later there was a knock on the door and Elena answered it to reveal the paramedics.

"What happened?" one of them asked as they came in and kneeled down next to Ric

"He got hit by a car." I said, " And he's coughing up blood."

"Get his vitals." The other paramedic said

"Pulse is pretty weak." observed the first paramedic, "Looks like internal bleeding. We gotta get him out of here."

"Let's move."

"Let's not and say we did." Tony said from the door way, compelling them, " Why don't we meet you two at the hospital."

The two paramedics nodded before packing their things and heading towards the door.

"No, no, no, wait." Elena said to them, " You have to help him."

"What are you doing?" I asked Tony

"You can still save him, Audrey." he said, "Here, take my blood." he held up his wrist, " I can't get in. You'll have to invite me."

"No." I said firmly

"Why are you doing this?" Elena asked him

"Klaus asked for his family and you didn't deliver." he explained

Ric started coughing and Elena and I ran over to him.

"Ric." Elena said, " We're right here."

"He's gonna die." Tony taunted us, " Come on, invite me in."

I was about to invite him in when he screamed and fell to the floor. I got up and ran to the door to see Jeremy with a crossbow in his hands.

"Jeremy." I said, "Thank God."

"He's not dead yet." he said walking into the house and heading into the kitchen

"Where are you going?" Elena asked him

When he came back from the kitchen he was holding a large butcher knife.

"Jeremy, what are you doing?" I asked as he walked back on the porch

I screamed when Jer brought the knife down and cut off Tony's head.

"Now he's dead." he said before standing up, "We've gotta get Alaric to the hospital now."

"Take my car. It's faster" I told Jer and Elena, " I'll call Damon and meet you there."

I threw my keys at Jer before saying, "Ruin my car and I will kill you."

"Got it." he said helping Elena bring Ric to the car

* * *

><p>After Elena and Jer had left with Ric I took Damon's car over to the boarding house to meet with Klaus. A few minutes after I got there someone knocked on the door. I opened it and Klaus was standing there.<p>

"Thank you for meeting me." I said as he walked inside

"I trust you have news of Stefan." Klaus said

"I couldn't find him." I lied, " But I have something else."

I lead him down to the basement where Rebekah was lying on the ground.

"My poor sister." Klaus said, " I can't turn my back on her for a moment."

"You have Rebekah." I said, " A deals a deal."

"My sister in exchange for your cousin." Klaus said, " Yeah, I'd say that's a bargain. Consider him spared."

"You should know that I was the one who dagger her." I informed Klaus, " When she wakes she'll come after me."

"I can control Rebekah." Klaus assured me, " Besides, I still need you're help in finding Stefan."

"I told you, I don't know where he is."

Klaus bent down and removed the dagger from Rebekah's back.

"You're lying." he accused, "Fortunately you have no shortage of loved one's. If I don't find my family the question you should be asking yourself is who's gonna die next? Elena? Aurora? Damon? It's only a matter of time before Stefan gives me what I want."

"He doesn't care anymore. You made sure of that." I told him, " You turned him into a monster. Now he's your problem." I looked down at Rebekah, " You should know, I'm not the only one that Rebekah wants dead. She knows what you did to your mother, she knows that you killed her."

I walked towards the door before turning back to Klaus, "You can let yourself out."

Then I headed back to the car.

* * *

><p>I was in the kitchen cleaning the blood off of a rag I had used to clean the porch when Damon walked in.<p>

"Did you get rid of him?" I asked, my back to Damon

"Yeah." he replied

"What about Alaric?"

"Took care of him too. He'll be fine." he said, " How are you?"

"I think I got most of the blood off of the porch." I told him, close to tears

"Audrey, look at me." he said and when I didn't move he turned me around, "It's gonna be okay."

"I have to tell you something." I said, " I made a deal with Klaus and I gave him Rebekah."

"What?" he said, sounding a little angry, " No. no, no, no, you did not do that. She's gonna come here and try to kill you."

"No she won't." I assured him, "Klaus won't let her because he needs me."

"And suddenly you trust him?"

"No I don't trust him." I said, " But what other choice do I have. I don't trust Stefan. Do you think he's just gonna hand over those coffins?"

"My brother is sort of running his own show right now." Damon said

"Yeah. Well, Jeremy just chopped off someone's head." I told him, "It's not right. It's not fair. He's sixteen years old. He shouldn't have to live like this. There has to be another way. We have to fix it."

"We will." Damon said holding my face in his hands, "Audrey. We will, okay?"

* * *

><p>"Hey." Elena said as her and I walked into Jer's room, " Can we talk?"<p>

"What did I do know?" he asked us

"We've been thinking about what you said earlier." I told him, " About how we should pack up and go."

"I didn't mean any of that." he said, taking a seat on his bed

"But you were right." Elena said as Ric and Damon came into the room, "You shouldn't have to give up a normal life."

"What's going on?" Jer asked, confused

"Audrey and Elena think we should have another one of our talks." Damon said sitting next to Jer and looking him in the eyes, compelling him, " Here's the thing, Jer. You're gonna go out of town for awhile, a long while. You're gonna stay with some nice family friends in Denver. You're gonna go to a new school, meet new girls. Living girls. You're gonna drink a few beers and take an art class. You do whatever you want."

"Tell him he's gonna leave Mystic Falls behind and never think twice about it." Alaric said

Damon looked at me and I nodded.

"You're gonna leave Mystic Falls behind and never think twice about it." Damon repeated, " You're gonna have a better life, Jeremy."

* * *

><p>" I feel like a horrible person." I told Damon as I walked onto the porch<p>

"You just saved his life, Audrey." Damon said, " Take it from me, strange is weird but dead is worse."

"I just can't stop thinking about what happened last time I asked you to take away his memories."

"He found out. And he got over it." he said, "Again, not dead, Audrey. He's so lucky to have you as family."

"Thank you." I said

"You're welcome."

"Not just for this , Damon." I said, walking up to him, "For everything. I don't know what I would do with out you."

"You should know this, Audrey." Damon said, looking me in the eyes, " Stefan didn't screw us over. He screwed us over but he had a good reason."

"What?"

"He saved Klaus to save me." he explained, " Then he stole the coffins to get even."

"What?" I asked, " Damon, if he did it to protect you then…why would he do that?"

" Brotherly love maybe." he said sarcastically, "I'm not sure. What I am sure of is that he isn't completely gone."

"Well, see about that." I said, "Well, I should probably head inside." I said turning towards the door, "Goodnight Damon."

"Audrey, wait." he said making me turn around

He walked up to me and placed his hands on my face before bringing his lips down to mine. As our lip moved together I wove my hands into his hair holding him close to me. After a few minutes he pulled away.

"Goodnight." he smiled and I brought my hands down to my sides letting him walk down the steps and to his car leaving me on the porch.

_**Author's Note**_

_**All I have to say is review and tell me what you think.**_


	11. Our Town

**Chapter Eleven-Our Town**

I was at working out using Ric's punching bag when he walked in.

"Hey, you're gonna punch a hole in that thing." Ric said, holding the punching bag

"First I take down this punching bag then I take down a vampire." I said continuing my punching

"What's got you all worked up?" Ric asked me

"Keeping this secret is killing." I told him " I haven't even told Aurora about it and she's my best friend."

"Speaking of Aurora, where has she been."

"She's visiting her parents." I told him, "She's coming back tonight."

"Oh." he said, " Why don't you just tell them about you and Damon then?"

"Because I know they're going to over react." I said throwing one last punch that almost made Ric fall back

"Nice." Ric commented, "You're getting stronger."

"So have you been since, you know, dying?" I asked him

"Fine but I think this ring is running low on batteries."

"Another reason why Jeremy has to get out of town." I told Ric, " If those rings have a shelf life then he's not protected and neither are you. Now, I need coffee."

I walked over to the coffee maker and poured my self a cup.

"Seems Damon's compulsion worked." Ric informed me, " Jeremy was packing when I left the house, going on about his new school in Denver."

"Good." I said, " I gotta go get ready for school."

I headed to the door with my coffee.

"I'll get this cup back to you later." I said, "See you in class."

"Bye." Ric said as I headed out the door.

* * *

><p>When I got to school I started helping Elena decorate Caroline's locker for her birthday.<p>

"Sorry I'm late." Bonnie said, walking up to us, " I got held up."

"It's okay." I said, " I just got here too. Elena was already here."

"Hey, I'm just trying to get this done before Care show's up." Elena said, " Could you pass me the balloons?"

"Sure thing." I said handing them over

"Thanks. So what had you two running late?" Elena asked

" I was working on some new spells." Bonnie replied

"I was working out with Alaric." I said before turning to Bonnie, "Bonnie, we have something to tell you and you're not gonna like it."

"What happened?" Bonnie asked, alarmed

"Jeremy's gonna be leaving town for awhile." Elena said, " He'll stay with some old family friends in Denver until this whole Klaus thing blows over."

"Jeremy wouldn't just leave you to deal with Klaus." Bonnie said

"I know. I asked Damon to compel him." I told her

"You what?" Bonnie asked angrily

"I know Bonnie." I started, " But it's not safe here for him anymore. Leaving will give him a better life."

"The only reason we're telling you is because we know you two haven't really worked out all you're stuff and we thought you would want to say goodbye." Elena added

Bonnie looked over at Jer before walking over to him.

* * *

><p>Elena and I waited for Care to come to her locker but she never did. We took the happy birthday sign from the locker, grabbed Bonnie and Matt, and headed to her house. We hid in her living room until we heard the door open and close and we jumped out and yelled, "Happy Birthday."<p>

"What are you guys doing here?" she asked surprised

"Well, you blew off school and missed our work of birthday art so…" Elena started

"Change you're clothes." Bonnie said, " We're going to the falls. Smores, campfire."

"Cake." I added, " Like when we were little."

"Except with tequila." Matt said holding up the bottle

"Thanks guys really." Care said, " But I'm just not feeling my birthday this year."

"I'm sorry, what?" Bonnie said, " You already claimed your birthday as everyone's favorite day of the year."

"Yeah. We celebrating you're birthday." I said, " Especially after you celebrated mine months late because…who told you again?"

"Aurora." she said then she realized what she had done, " Shoot."

"She's gonna get it now." I said, starting to plan, "Anyway, we're celebrating."

"My birthday's just a reminder that technically I'm dead." she told us, " Look, I'm seventeen. The only point to seventeen is to get to eighteen. It's a filler year. I'm stuck in a filler year."

"You're not stuck, Caroline." Elena said

"Yeah, I am, but it's okay." Care said, " It's all good, I'll be fine. I just need some time to dwell in it."

"Okay." I said, " I have a better idea then."

Before we left I got a text from Aurora.

_I'm back._

_Where r u_

_~A.R~_

_We're heading to the mausoleum for Care's birthday._

_Meet us there in ten._

_Audrey;D_

_OK_

_~A.R.~ _

* * *

><p>"Here it is." I said as we entered the mausoleum, I turned to Aurora when I saw her leaning against the back wall, "Hey, Aurora."<p>

"Hey." she said, " I come back and the first thing we do is hang out in the cemetery. Strange."

"Yeah." Bonnie agreed, "This is creepy. Even for us."

"Yeah but Caroline was right." I said, "Technically she is dead, sorry, but you don't need a birthday, you need a funeral. You need to say good bye to you're old life so you can get on with your new one."

"Okay." Care said, " Here lies Caroline Forbes…"

"Cheerleader, Miss Mystic Falls, third grade hopscotch champion." Elena added with a smile

"Friend, daughter, perfectionist." Bonnie said

"Mean girl." Matt said, " Sometimes, no offense."

"None taken." Care laughed

"She was seventeen and she had a really good run." I continued, " So rest in peace so she can move on. That's what you really need. That's what we all need."

"Amen." Aurora said then saw the tequila in Matt's hand, " Or cheers or whatever."

I grabbed the cake and put the candles in it before walking back to everyone.

"Bonnie?" I asked and she lit the candles with her powers, " Nice. Okay, make a wish."

Care thought for a minute before blowing out the candles.

* * *

><p>Matt was about to drink the last of the bottle when I grabbed it from him<p>

"I need it more then you do." I told him, "Trust me."

"Caroline what are you doing?" Elena asked her

"Nothing." she said quickly, hiding her phone

"Okay, you're a bad sober liar and an even worse drunk liar." Elena told her

"I might have texted Tyler." she admitted

"Caroline…" I started

"What, I'm weak."

"Give her a break." Bonnie told me, " You can't control what everyone does all the time."

"Wow." I said, hurt

"Sorry." she apologized, " I know it's Caroline's birthday, funeral or whatever but I just feel that it's really wrong to compel Jeremy to leave town."

"Is that why he was packing when I was at the house?" Aurora asked and Elena nodded

"I'm doing it to protect him, Bonnie." I tried to explain, " I want to give him a chance at a quite happy life."

"He should be able to chose how he wants to live his life." Bonnie snapped, " You're taking his choices away."

"Bonnie, you can't tell him." Elena said

"Why, are you gonna compel me not to?"

"You know, you guys are ruining a perfectly good funeral." Matt said, trying to stop our fight

"I'm sorry." Bonnie said standing up, " I guess I'll just sleep it off or something. Happy birthday, Caroline."

Bonnie grabbed her stuff before leaving.

* * *

><p>We were all laughing about the time Care and I had tried to run away when we were ten and only got two blocks from our houses before we got scared by a dog and ran back home promising we would never leave again when Tyler walked in and everyone went silent.<p>

"Sorry." Ty said, "I didn't mean to crash the party."

"So don't." Matt said harshly

"No, it's okay." Caroline told Tyler

"Can I talk to you for a sec?" Tyler asked her, " It's kind of important."

Care nodded and they both walked out into the woods.

"I think I'm gonna head out." Aurora said, " I have a bunch of unpacking to do."

"Okay." I said as she headed for the door, " See you later."

"Are you okay?" Elena asked Matt after Aurora was gone

"Yeah, I want her to be happy." Matt said, " It's what I want for all of you guys in the middle of this crazy life we got stuck in."

"Is that how you see it?" Elena asked, " That we're stuck."

Matt didn't say anything.

"Bonnie was right." I said, changing the subject, " I had no right messing with Jer's head. I just don't know what else to do."

"I understand." Elena said, " He's in danger here."

"Yeah." I said, " And I can't loose anyone else I love."

* * *

><p>A few minutes later I was laying on one of the benches when I started having a vision.<p>

"_I take it all back." Tyler said as he and Care stood in the woods, " Everything I said this morning. Klaus can't control me, not when it comes to you."_

"_Tyler, it's okay." Care said, " Maybe we just weren't meant to be together. Maybe we just have to accept that and move on."_

"_I'm not moving on from anything." Tyler told her, " I love you."_

"_What?" Care asked_

_Instead of responding he brought his lips down to hers and they started to kiss. Things started to get pretty heated as Tyler started to kiss her neck. Caroline gasped and I saw that Tyler had bit her._

"_What happened?" Care asked angrily, "Did you just bite me?"_

"_Oh, my God." he said stepping back_

"_Oh, my God." Care yelled, "Get away from me."_

"Tyler." I said coming back to reality

"What?" Matt asked

"We have to find Care and Tyler now." I said, getting to my feet " I just saw him bite her."

"Oh, my God." Elena said, " Let's go."

* * *

><p>"CAROLINE!" Matt yelled but there was no response<p>

"CARE." I yelled, " WHERE ARE YOU?"

"Great." Elena said, " I knew letting them leave was a bad idea."

"Yeah, you voiced your opinion very well." I told her sarcastically

Before she could respond Stefan came out of nowhere and pushed her and Matt into a wall, knocking them unconscious. I tried to run but he grabbed me and took me away.

* * *

><p>"What are you doing, Stefan?" I asked as we drove down the road<p>

He didn't answer. My phone started to ring and Stefan looked at the caller I.D. before answering it.

"Hello, Damon." he said, "She's a little busy right now."

"Why the h*ll do you have Audrey's phone?" I heard Damon say

"I'm making my next move." Stefan replied, " Let me ask you something. What is Klaus going to do if he can't make anymore hybrids?"

"What?" I asked

"Stefan, leave her out of this." Damon said sternly

In response Stefan threw my phone out the window.

"What are you doing?" I asked again with no answer, " Stefan let me out of this car. Do you hear me? Let me out of this car!"

* * *

><p>"So what's the plan, Stefan?" I asked a few minutes later, " What's the big move you're making?"<p>

" I took Klaus's family to make him suffer." Stefan said, " I'm going to continue to make him suffer."

"So what are you going to do?" I asked, "Lock me in some cave and keep me hostage?"

"Maybe I'll just turn you into a vampire." he said, turning to me

" Stop the car Stefan." I said, taking in how serious he was, " Stop the car."

Stefan took out his phone, dialed a number, and put it on speaker before putting it on the dashboard.

"Stefan." Klaus answered, "How nice to hear your voice."

"Tell your hybrids to get out of town, Klaus." Stefan told him

" That's not gonna happen until I get my coffins back."

"Okay." Stefan said, " Well, I'm gonna drive your blood source off Wickery Bridge."

"I don't believe you, Stefan." Klaus said, " You won't kill her."

Stefan bit his wrist before shoving it in my mouth, forcing the blood down my throat.

"No, no, no." I said, " What are you doing?"

"What's going on?" Klaus asked

"I just fed her my blood." Stefan informed him, " No more hybrids if she's a vampire."

"You won't do it."

"Really? Try me." Stefan said hitting the gas, " Because you're coffins are next to go. Say goodbye to your family Klaus."

"Stefan slow down." I yelled

"Fine!" Klaus said, " I'll send them away."

Stefan only continued to go faster.

"Stefan! Stefan stop!" I screamed

"Stop the car Stefan." Klaus almost yelled

With that the car came to a halt and I jumped out of the car.

"Get back into the car." Stefan said

"Stay away from me." I told him as I walked away

"Audrey, get back in the car."

"How could you Stefan?" I asked, facing him

"Look, he had to believe that I would do it alright." he said, " Your fear sold it."

"What if he hadn't?" I asked

"He did." Stefan replied

"What if he hadn't?" I repeated

"He did, Audrey." he said, " He backed down. He has a weakness. If I know his weakness I can destroy him."

"After all that's happened that's all that matters?" I asked him, "Destroying Klaus?"

"Destroying Klaus is all I have left."

"You had me and Elena." I said, " Elena has been in love with you since you met and to me you were like the brother I never had."

" I lost you both the minute I left town with him." Stefan argued, " You both know that, you just haven't let yourselves admit it yet."

"Is that what you're doing?" I asked, " Trying to make us hate you?"

" I don't really care what you two think of me anymore." Stefan said before getting back into his car and driving off.

* * *

><p>"Thanks for picking me up." I told Damon as we walked onto the porch<p>

"Anytime." he said, " Are you going to be okay."

"I'll survive." I said, " I always do."

"You know, Stefan won this round for us today." Damon said, " He pushed Klaus to the edge and Klaus blinked."

"Well his methods sucked."

"Still, we needed it." he continued, " Klaus has been calling the shots and Stefan beat him at his own game. He was the better villain."

"Could you not sound so impressed?" I asked him

"Well, I can't help but be a little proud." Damon said, smirking, before taking my face in his hands, " But really, tell me, are you gonna be okay?"

" I have you don't I." I smiled, " I think I'll be fine."

He gave me a quick kiss before letting me go.

"Good night." Damon said

"Good night, Damon." I said before heading inside

* * *

><p>"You're gonna have to let me go eventually." Jer told me the next morning as he was about to leave<p>

"You don't know that." I said, "If I had it my way I would be hugging you all the way to the airport but Ric won't let me come."

"Trust me, Jer, it's for your own safety." Ric yelled from the car, "I heard her plotting to sneak onto the plane."

"Hey, what I plot in my room is none of your business, Saltsman ." I said before pulling way from Jer, "I'm gonna miss you Jer."

Aurora gave him a quick hug.

"I'll miss you too, buddy."

Then Elena wrapped her arms around him and said, " Be safe." before letting go

"Yeah, alright." Jer said, " Alaric is waiting."

As he was walking out to the car Bonnie came up to him.

"Good, you haven't left yet." Bonnie said, relieved

"What are you doing here?" Jeremy asked her

"I cam to say goodbye." she said before giving him a quick hug.

Jer picked up his things and headed to the car and we watched as it drove away.

* * *

><p>I was sitting in the woods where Emily had almost killed me a year ago when Aurora came and sat down next me.<p>

"Are you gonna tell me what we're doing here?" she asked

"I should have died here." I told her, " I shouldn't have survived when Emily tried to kill me."

"Why would you say that." Aurora said worriedly , "You're not gonna kill yourself are you?"

"No." I assured her, "I just feel stuck. Like I've been holding onto the girl that should have died here. The girl that had parents, a non-vampire best friend, and wasn't in love with a vampire."

"You're not that girl anymore." Aurora told me, " It's okay if you want to let her go."

"Is it? Because I fell like I'm disappointing her a little." I explained

"For my two cents, as the girl that new that girl, you're doing better then you think." She said before picking up some flowers and laying them down next to me, " Here lies Audrey Darke. An awesome daughter and the most amazing best friend a girl could ever ask for."

I smiled before giving her a hug.

"Thanks." I said, standing, "I really needed that."

"You're welcome." she said, standing as well, " Now lets get out of here. This place gives me the creeps."

"Ditto." I said as we walked out of the woods

* * *

><p>"A hiker called it in." Liz said as she, Damon, and I walked to the woods to the crime scene, "My guys got here first."<p>

"Another hybrid?" I asked as we got closer

"That's what I thought at first." Liz said as we stood over the body, " Brain Walkers, the medical examiner."

Brian was lying on the ground with a stake sticking out of his chest.

"Why the stake?" Damon asked the obvious question, "He's not a vampire."

"I know." Liz said, " This was a murder."

"Fantastic." I said sarcastically, " Vampires, werewolves, hybrids, and now a psycho killer. This town just keeps getting better."

_**Author's Note**_

_**I would like to thank my ninja of pure awesomeness grapejuice101 for her help with this story. I'm almost caught up guys, just one more chapter to get through. Review so I know if I'm doing anything right ( or wrong). Thank you to all my reviews and for all favs and alerts who have made this story my most popular one. **_

_**Audrey;D**_


	12. The Ties That Bind

**Chapter Twelve-The Ties That Bind**

"I've been having these dreams for days." Bonnie said as we stood in the witch house looking at all of the coffins, " It's like the witches are trying to send me a message."

"I just can't believe you guys kept this from us this whole time." Elena said

"Yeah, I'm a little hurt." I added

"Stefan thought that if you two knew where the coffins were Klaus could threaten people to get information out of you." Bonnie explained

"So this is the rest of his family?" I asked Bonnie

"Yeah. Elijah and two others. And this one," she said walking over to the granite coffin. " the one we can't open. We don't know who, or what, is in it."

"What the h*ll are you doing?" Stefan asked as he entered

"I need them to know about the coffins." Bonnie told him

"And I needed you to keep them out of it." Stefan said

"So what are you going to do, Stefan?" Elena asked him, " Are you gonna kidnap us so we won't tell anyone?"

"Don't tempt me, Elena."

"I think I know, who can open the coffin, Stefan." Bonnie told Stefan, "And I need them to help me find her."

"Find who?" Stefan asked, " What are you talking about?"

"I couldn't place her at first. Then I realized…" Bonnie trailed off taking a picture out of her pocket and showing it to Elena and I

"Oh my God, Bonnie." I said as Bonnie handed the picture to Stefan

"Who is this?" Stefan asked

"It's my mom."

* * *

><p>Elena, Bonnie, Aurora and I sat around the dinning room table looking through a pile of pictures of women with the name Abby Bennett.<p>

" Los Alamitos?" I asked handing Bonnie a picture

"Too old." she said

"Honolulu?" Aurora asked hopefully

"I wish." Bonnie said looking at the picture, " How many of these are there?"

"A lot." Elena told her, "I asked the sheriff's office to pull up every single Abby Bennett in the country."

"I know we haven't been able to really... that things had been weird, because of Jeremy, so, thank you for helping me with this." Bonnie said, "I know you have a lot to deal with."

" Nothing is more important , Bonnie." I told her

"It's surreal." Bonnie started, " Having to track down a woman who bailed on her own kid."

"Ah, the wonderful world we live in." Aurora said sarcastically

"You know you don't have to, right?" Elena asked her, " Let Stefan obsess over opening up the coffins. It doesn't have to fall on you."

"The coffin is spelled shut." Bonnie said, "That makes it a witch problem. So it does fall on me. I was bound to see my mother again sooner or later."

"Sooner." Damon said walking into the house, " Abby Bennett Wilson, Monroe, North Carolina. Born in Mystic Falls hospital, graduated at Mystic Falls High…Blah, blah, blah." he handed the picture over to Bonnie.

"This is her." Bonnie said

"Yep." Damon said, "Road trip. I call shotgun."

"No." I said, gathering some of the pictures and standing

"Why?" he asked, looking me in the eyes, " Want me to hang out in back with you?"

"You're not coming." I told him

"Why not? I'm the one that found her."

"Look, Bonnie hasn't seen her mom in over fifteen years." I explained, " We don't need your snarky commentaries along the way."

We continued to look at each other and Damon gave me the most adorable puppy dog face before smirking at me.

"What's going on between you two?" Bonnie asked

"We've been dating for a month and she didn't want you to know." Damon told her before turning to me and smiling, "Have a good trip." then he walked past me and out the door.

I looked over at Aurora, Bonnie, and Elena and saw their equally shocked and angry faces before running after Damon. I reached him just as he was about to walk off the porch.

"Damon." I said grabbing his arm, "Why did you do that?"

"Cause you were never going to." he said turning to face me

" Yes I was." I told him, " When I found the right moment."

"And you never would have found that moment." he said, " Look, I love you and I don't care who knows."

"I love you too." I said smiling up at him

"Then you shouldn't care what they think." Damon said, "Be safe on your trip."

" If anything happens I'm sure you'll save me." I said, "You always do."

"Well as the name implies, Salvatore as in savior."

"How could I ever resist a sexy, Italian, savior?" I said with a laugh before kissing him quickly," I'll see you when we get back."

Then I turned around and headed back inside

* * *

><p>I was sitting in the backseat of Bonnie's car as she, Elena and I drove to her mothers home.<p>

" I just can't believe that I'm actually going to see her." Bonnie said, " Or meet her. Sort of. Since I don't really remember her."

"You never really talk about her." Elena said from the passengers seat

"What's to say? She left, never wrote, never called." Bonnie said, "Not even when my Grams died. Could we talk about Audrey and Damon instead?"

"Hey." I protested, "Just because you don't want the spotlight on you doesn't mean you should move it to me."

"Come on, Audrey." Elena said, " How could you date Damon for a month and not tell us?"

"Easily."

"Audrey…" Bonnie started, " Damon is not a good guy."

" You don't know him like I do Bonnie." I told her, "Trust me, he's a good guy."

"Who has killed a lot of people." Bonnie said

"That doesn't matter." I told her, "The past is the past. He's changed."

"People don't change." Bonnie said

"I don't know, Bonnie." Elena said, "He's definitely not the same Damon that came to town two years ago."

"Exactly." I said

" I think that it's a good thing that you two are dating." Elena said

"Really?" Bonnie and I asked her at the same time

"I mean, it was obviously going to happen eventually." Elena said to us, " At least Damon hasn't gone off the deep end and tried to kill your cousin to get even with Klaus."

"How are you dealing with the whole Stefan thing?" Bonnie asked her

"Stefan's gone." she said, " He's gone crazy with revenge."

Bonnie's phone started ringing and she sighed as she looked at the caller I.D.

"Speak of the devil." she muttered, " It's Stefan, I told him I'd call him as soon as I got the address."

"Ignore him." I suggested, " Bonnie, you're going to see your mom for the first time in fifteen years and we're not gonna let anyone ruin this for you."

"Yeah." she agreed, " But he's just gonna keep at it until I answer."

"Fine." Elena, taking the phone and answering it, " What?"

"Where are you?" Stefan asked from the other end

"Bonnie, Audrey, and I are going to spend the night at the lake house." Elena explained, "Where we'll wait for Sheriff Forbes to send us the address."

"You're kidding me, right?" Stefan snapped

"No I'm not." Elena replied, " We need a night away from our insanity."

"Klaus is getting closer." Stefan told her, " He knows I'm stalling. We need to move faster."

"Well, we're doing everything we can." Elena said, " So, could you maybe not call every five minutes?"

"Sure, Elena." Stefan said coolly, " Whatever you say."

Elena hung the phone and we continued on way.

* * *

><p>A few hours later we pulled up to Abby Bennett's house.<p>

"Cute house." Elena commented

"In the middle of nowhere." Bonnie said

"Yeah, a house in the middle of nowhere like this is just screaming leave." I added, " You ready?"

Bonnie nodded and we got out of the car. We made our way up to the door and Elena rang the doorbell.

"Hey there." a guy said coming up to us a few moments later

"Hey." I greeted, "We're looking for Abby Wilson."

"She's not home." he said, " Is there something I can do for you?"

"It's okay." Bonnie said, " We can come back later."

"I'm sorry but you look so familiar."

"Abby's my mom." Bonnie admitted

"Oh, I'm Jamie." told us, " Do you guys wanna come inside?"

Elena, Bonnie, and I looked at each other before nodding

Jamie opened the front door and we all walked inside.

* * *

><p>"You guys sure you don't want anything?" Jamie asked us from the fridge, " We've got fresh OJ, water, or mango guava juice."<p>

"Water's fine." Elena said

"Cool." he said grabbing some glasses and filling them

"I'm sorry, but has anyone ever told you that you look just like Arnaz Ballard from One on One?" I asked him

He laughed before saying, " Yeah, I get that a lot actually."

"It's uncanny, really." I said

"He does look like him." Bonnie said before asking Jamie, " So are we related?"

"Oh, no." Jamie answered quickly, " Abby's not my mom."

"Good." Elena said, smiling at Bonnie

"Yeah, she dated my old man back in the day." Jamie began to explain, " He was a dead beat so when they broke up she took me in. Put me through school, didn't freak out when I totaled her car, twice."

"She sounds… great." Bonnie said

Then a woman walked into the house.

"Jamie who's car is out front?" The woman, who I quickly identified as Abby, said as she walked into the kitchen.

"That's mine." Bonnie said, "I'm Bonnie…you're daughter."

Shock crossed Abby's face.

"Hello, Bonnie."

* * *

><p>"How are you holding up?" Elena asked Bonnie after Abby had gone to grab some food<p>

"I'll be fine." Bonnie answered, " I'm not here to get my mom back, I'm here to get her help."

Abby walked into the room with a tray of food.

"So I hope you guys are hungry," She said setting the food on the table, " because food has always been my go to ice breaker."

"You have a really beautiful home." Elena told her

"You're so sweet." Abby said, "Just like you're mother."

"You knew my mom?"

" I knew both of your mom's ." Abby said, looking between Elena and I , "Miranda and Mira were my best friends."

"So you had a daughter and two best friends and you still left?" Bonnie asked her sharply

"My best friends are the reason why I left." Abby said, " Fifteen years ago a vampire came to town looking for the doppelganger and the psychic. No one could manage to kill him so I lured him out of town and cast a spell to desiccate him."

"Mikael." I stated, "He was an Original vampire."

"It took every ounce of magic I had." Abby said, " Almost killed me. I recovered but my magic never returned."

"And neither did you." Bonnie said icily

"It wasn't that simple." Abby told her

"It wasn't?" Bonnie asked skeptically, " You cast a spell, put down Mikael, then what? Did you teach Jamie how to drive?"

"Bonnie…" Elena started

"This was a mistake." Bonnie cut her off, " She doesn't have any magic, she can't help us."

Bonnie headed toward the door but Abby grabbed her by the arm.

"Bonnie wait." she started, "Don't go. Talk to me, please."

"We'll wait outside." Elena said standing up and walking out the door with me beside her.

* * *

><p>Elena and I walked around outside and headed toward the barn at the back of the property. As we got closer I got this really bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.<p>

"Elena, wait." I said, stopping

"What is it?" she asked nervously

"I'm not sure exactly, but something isn't right."

Then I heard something snap behind us and we both turned around to see Stefan.

"Hi, Elena and Audrey." he said, "Nice lake house."

* * *

><p>"So what, did you think that I wouldn't find out?" Stefan asked us as we stood in the barn<p>

"To be honest we didn't care." I told him

"This is exactly why I didn't want to involve you two, Audrey." Stefan said

"Yeah, because now you can't do anything you want." Elena snapped

"Everything alright out here?" Jamie asked, coming into the barn

"Hey Jamie, go back inside." I said, " Trust me, it's better off for you there."

"I don't think so." Jamie told me

"I'd listen to her." Stefan said, " Go back upstairs man."

"I said, I don't think so." Jamie repeated

Stefan laughed before grabbing Jamie by the throat and compelling him.

"Go back upstairs before I rip your throat out." Stefan told him, " Do you understand me?"

Jamie nodded and Stefan let him go. Then Jamie turned and headed upstairs.

"I don't think you realize how bad you've gotten." Elena shouted

"It's the way it has to be, Elena." Stefan said

"That's right, out-villain the villain." Elena said, " I get it."

Then I saw Jamie come back with a shotgun in his hand.

"You're not supposed to be here." Jamie said, pointing the gun at Stefan

"Jamie, what are you doing?" I asked him

"What I was told." he said to me, "He's not supposed to be here."

"He's been compelled." Stefan said

Then Jamie shot Stefan in the chest and he fell to the ground.

* * *

><p>After Jamie had shot Stefan he turned to Elena and I and tied us to the support beams of the barn.<p>

"Why are you doing this?" I asked Jamie

"Stop moving." he ordered

"Jamie, let us go." Elena said, "He needs help."

"Jamie!" I heard Abby yell and I looked to see her dragging Bonnie to her car

"Bonnie?" Elena asked

"Bonnie!" I yelled as Jamie ran to help Abby

* * *

><p>After awhile I had almost broken the ropes that bound me.<p>

"I've almost got it." I told Elena as Jamie came back

"Abby hasn't called yet." Jamie said as he begun pacing back and forth

"Jamie, please let us go." Elena pleaded

"No." he said, " Please don't do anything. Look, I don't know why I shot him, I don't know why I'm holding this gun, but if either of you move I will shoot him again."

"Okay, we won't." I lied, " Who gave you the gun?"

"A man came by earlier today, he said that they were wooden bullets and told me if anyone got in our way that I'm supposed to shot them."

"What else did he say?" Elena asked Jamie

"If Abby didn't find the location of some coffins, I'm supposed to shoot myself."

"What about us?" I asked, " What did he say about us?"

"I'm not supposed to hurt you." he said

"Are you sure?" I asked and Jamie nodded, " Because these bonds are so tight , they're starting to hurt me."

Jamie came towards me and as soon as he was close enough I broke free of the ropes, took the gun, and hit Jamie in the head with it making him fall to the ground, unconscious. Then I ran over to Elena and removed her ropes and we both went over to Stefan.

"What can we do to help?" Elena asked Stefan

"Every time I move, the wood shifts inside me." Stefan said, " I can feel it scraping my heart. You need to take the pieces out."

"Well we better get to work then." I said to Elena

She nodded and we turned to Stefan and began to remove the bullets.

* * *

><p>Stefan groaned as Elena tried to take a piece of wood out of Stefan's chest.<p>

"I'm just trying to help." she said

"Just get it out, Elena." Stefan told her, " Just get it out."

"Keep screaming and maybe we'll feel sorry for you." I said frostily

Elena tried one more time and got the last piece out.

"You've changed." Stefan told me, " Something is different about you. You're stronger, tougher."

"You're not the only one that had to change." Elena said, " We all had to."

"It's good to know."

"There's something I have to tell you, Stefan." I started, " And it's not because I feel guilty, because trust me I don't, it's because I feel guilty that you don't know. I'm dating Damon."

Stefan looked at me with what seemed like disappointment for a minute before standing and leaving without saying anything.

I looked at Elena.

"I'm gonna go talk to him." I told her before walking after Stefan

I found him leaning on his car.

"Stefan, say something, please." I said

"I shouldn't have kidnapped you." Stefan said, " The car, the bridge, that was too much."

"Yes, it was." I agreed

"But you guys shouldn't have lied to me today. You can't go off and do things like that. Not with Klaus still around."

" I know." I told him, " We just wanted to give Bonnie a moment with her mother without anything else getting in the way."

"Without me getting in the way." Stefan rephrased as he walked to the door of his car

"You don't have to worry about me and Damon." I said

"You're better than him, Audrey." he told me getting in the car, " Remember that."

He slammed the door shut and drove away.

* * *

><p>After Stefan had left I got Elena and we went to pick up Bonnie from where she was with Abby before heading home. We walked into the house and saw Alaric and Dr. Fell kissing.<p>

"Oh, hi, sorry." Elena said as they pulled apart and looked at us

"I'm gonna go." Dr. Fell said, blushing

"Okay, yeah." Ric said, before she headed out the door, " I'm sorry you guys."

"Please." I laughed, " It's fine."

" It's not fine." Ric said, " I mean, it's not even my place. It's your place. It's Jenna's place. It's you family's house."

"The moment you slept on that couch it became your house to." Elena told him, " We needed you and you stayed. So thank you for that. Hey, look, I know it's hard to move on, but Jenna's gone and you're allowed to move on."

"Well, I love all of yalls but I'm gonna head upstairs and head off to bed." I said, "So, bye."

I turned around and headed up the stairs.

* * *

><p>I was laying on my bed, trying to fall asleep when a was struck with a vision.<p>

_Klaus was talking to one of his hybrids._

" _You've got your family back. Finally." the hybrid said, " You gonna open them?"_

"_Not quiet yet." Klaus told him, " I still have some unfinished business to take care of."_

" _What business?" The hybrid asked curiously_

_Before Klaus could answer him the hybrid screamed before falling to the ground. Standing behind him was Elijah with the hybrids heart in his hand._

"_So, Niklaus…" Elijah said_

"_Elijah." Klaus said confused_

"_What have I missed?"_

_**Review, Review, Review. Also thank you to the amazing grapejuice101 for everything.**_

_**Audrey;D**_


	13. Bringing Out The Dead

**Author's Note**

**I thought I would start this chapter by responding to some reviews.**

**Grapejuice101: Thank you so much, it means a lot that you thought it was a great chapter.**

**Katiey: That is exactly it, Stefan thinks of Audrey as kind of a sister and is upset with her about dating Damon.**

**Courtney: You never know things could be all happy endings ( yeah right) or they are about to get complicated.**

**CassieSalvatore: Thanks for all the love on last chap.**

**Chapter Thirteen- Bringing Out The Dead**

"_You look surprised to see me." Elijah continued, " So it wasn't you who removed the dagger from my chest."_

"_You look like you could do with a drink." Klaus said, " We have a lot to discuss so, shall we?"_

_Elijah looked at him for a moment before attacking him and they both fell into the next room next to three of the four coffins._

"_Easy." Klaus warned, getting off the floor " I just finished renovating, You have every right to be mad at me but I did keep my word, I reunited you with our family."_

_Elijah ran over to one of the coffins, opened it to reveal a man, and removed the dagger from his chest before trying to stake Klaus. Klaus quickly got the upper hand and took the dagger from him and holding it above Elijah's heart._

"_Don't make me do this again, Elijah." Klaus threatened him_

"_Come on, use it, I dare you." Elijah said, " You'll have Kol to deal with."_

_With that Klaus brought the dagger to his side and backed away from Elijah._

"_Mikael is dead." he said_

"_What did you say?" _

"_I killed him." Klaus told him, "With his own weapon. He's gone Elijah, forever."_

"_Why does our family remain in these coffins?" Elijah asked him, "Finn for over 900 years, Kol for over a century" _

"_Because of Stefan Salvatore." Klaus explained, " He holds the one thing that keeps me from freeing them." he walked over to Kol's coffin, " There are things you don't know about our past Elijah, our mothers death, things I never wanted you to know but I'm ready to tell you know. I only ask that you remember the oath you once swore to me."_

"_What are you doing?" Elijah asked as Klaus daggered Kol once more_

"_Always and forever." Klaus continued, ignoring Elijah, " I need you to stand by my side. Be my brother, Help me destroy Stefan and I promise you that our family will be whole again."_

_Klaus closed the lid to Kol's coffin before turning back to Elijah._

I sat up in my bed and looked at my clock and it said 7: 25 am. I sighed in exasperation before picking up my phone and dialing Damon's number.

"What the h*ll did you do, Damon?" I asked when he picked up the phone

"Well, good morning to you too, gorgeous." He replied

"Why did you un-dagger Elijah." I asked instead

" How do you know that I un - never mind." he said, " We needed his help."

"Really?" I asked sarcastically, " We need the help of a backstabbing Original?"

" He'll want to get back at Klaus for killing him." Damon argued

"Well, I sure hope so because Klaus is already trying to get Elijah on his side."

" Don't worry about it, Audrey." he said, " I've got this."

" Last time you said that you almost got killed by Mikael." I retorted

"Yeah, but I did get Stefan on our side."

I just rolled my eyes, " Just, try not to get yourself killed today. Okay?"

"You've got it." he said before hanging up.

I set my phone down and headed to the shower.

* * *

><p>After I had showered and gotten dressed I walked into the kitchen to find Elena and Alaric already there.<p>

"Morning." I said

"I thought we had aspirin." Ric said as he walked around the kitchen looking for the aspirin.

"Yeah, in the cabinet." Elena said, pointing to the right one

"You're hung-over." I observed

"Yeah, sorry about that." Ric said taking the aspirin, " It was a bit of a weird night."

"We told you, you don't have to feel guilty about inviting Meredith over here." Elena told him

"Oh, I know, and I thank you both for that." he said, " But I do feel guilty for whiskey dialing her at two a.m."

"You didn't." Elena laughed

"Oh, yes I did." Ric replied

"Is she okay with that?" I asked him

"Well, as soon as the aspirin kicks in and I remember the conversation I'll let you know."

As Elena and I were trying to hold back laughter the doorbell rang and we all went to answer it and Liz was standing there.

"Sheriff Forbes, hi." Elena greeted, " Is everything okay?"

"This is an unconventional conversation we are about to have so I hope you'll protect me on it." Liz said

"Of course." Ric said as we all went to talk on the porch

"I assume you two," she looked between Elena and Alaric, " heard that our medical examiner was murdered the night of the Wickery Bridge fundraiser."

"Yeah, they know, Brian Walters." I said, " Why?"

"We've been investigating." she said holding up a stake in an evidence bag, "Someone shove this stake through his heart."

"That's one of ours." Ric realized, " I mean this is one of a set from your parents lake house, Elena."

"That's why I'm here." Liz explained, " I haven's told anyone but forensics searched it for prints and found only one clean set." she turned toward Elena, "Yours."

"What?"

* * *

><p>After Liz had left I headed into the kitchen and I called Damon.<p>

"So Elena's the prime suspect, huh?" Damon asked after I had filled him in on everything

"Yeah but she doesn't think Elena did it." I told him, "She's just trying to she's just trying to find out why somebody used one of our family weapons to kill a council member."

"Well, why don't you ask Ric if his dirty little doctor had access to the weapons?" Damon asked as Ric and Elena walked in

"You're on speaker phone." Ric told him

"I'm just sayin, the first suspect is usually the right one." Damon said, " Don't get so defensive."

"Brian Walters was killed days ago, right?" Ric said, "I didn't show Meredith this stuff until last night!"

"It wasn't Meredith." Elena told Damon forcefully

"But Brian Walters was her ex-boyfriend and Ric did she them fighting that night." Damon persisted

"It's not Meredith, Okay." I said before looking as Ric, "I refuse to believe that your luck with women is that tragic."

"Who else knows abut your secret little slayer stash?" Damon asked Ric

"Dozens." Ric replied, " I've got weapons everywhere. Here, school, my loft, your car."

"It's Klaus." Damon said, " It had to be. He's screwing with us."

" I don't Klaus would take the time to kill a medical examiner." I said, " I mean, what does Brian Walters have to do with anything."

"What if it was Stefan?" Elena suggested, " I mean he was crazy that night and he was trying to get under Klaus's skin. He was capable of pretty much anything."

" Makes me nostalgic for the time Stefan was a bunny snaking pacifist." Damon said, " Anyway, I gotta go."

"Hey, where are you?" Ric asked him

"Tea with an old friend." Damon said before hanging up

* * *

><p>I was waiting for Caroline at the hospital. I had gone with her to pick up her father and she if she could get anything on Meredith. A few minutes after she had gone to talk to Meredith she came back without Bill.<p>

"That was fast." I said

"Yeah, he's not here. He was already discharged." she said, " She seems perfectly nice by the way. A little intense maybe. I think it's sweet that you wanna make sure Alaric's not dating a total psycho."

"He's my family." I said, " I've got to look out for him."

Caroline nodded before taking out her phone, after a few seconds she pulled her phone away from her ear.

"What is it?" I asked

"I can hear it." she said

"Hear what?"

"My dad's phone." she said leading me into a storage room

As we walked deeper into it the ringing got louder until we found Bill on the ground with a knife in his chest.

"Dad." Care said running over to him and dropping to her knees, "Dad?"

"Oh, my God." I said

"Don't be dead, don't be dead, don't be dead." Care said frantically, pulling the knife out of Bill's chest, " Oh, my God. Daddy."

"Caroline…" I started, realizing something, " He has vampire blood in his system."

" What!" Care said

Then Bill gasped and sat up.

* * *

><p>"I compelled the nurse to stay out of this room." Care said coming in after we had moved into one of the hospital rooms, " You'll be safe here."<p>

"I'm already completely healed." Bill said, looking at his reflection in the mirror, " I need something to eat."

"Daddy, why don't you come lay down and relax?" Caroline suggested

"I can't, my pulse is racing." Bill responded, " It's the effect of my body wanting to transition."

"Well, maybe Dr. Fell can give you something." Care said

"She's already done enough." Bill told her

"I called your mom." I said to Care

"Thanks."

"Mr. Forbes, did you see your attacker?" I asked him

"I didn't see anything." he replied, " I tried to sneak out the back exit and someone came at me from behind."

"Look, well figure this out." Care said, " But in the mean time we need to get you some blood."

"I' not going to drink any blood." Bill said bluntly

"But you have to." I told him, " You died with vampire blood in your system. If you don't feed and finish the transition then you'll die."

" I understand how it works." he said, " And that's what I'm prepared to do. Now, get me out of this hospital. I smell blood everywhere."

He turned around and headed out of the door leaving me and Caroline shocked.

* * *

><p>When I got to the house I saw Elena and Ric organizing weapons on the kitchen counter.<p>

"What are you guys up to?" I asked them

"Taking inventory." Ric said, " Did you bring it?"

"You mean did I steal evidence from a crime scene?" I asked taking the knife that was used from Bill out of my purse and handing it over to Ric, " Yes."

"You're right." he said looking at it, " It's a match this is from the crawl space in the foyer. Which means, Meredith knew where it was."

"That doesn't mean she stole it." Elena said

"This is from the loft." he said, holding up a stake before putting it down and picking up another, " This is from set in a duffle in Damon's car."

"Identical to the one that killed Brian Walters." Elena commented

"Damon's car was at the Wickery Bridge fundraiser, so was Meredith." Ric said, "And that was the night her ex-boyfriend, the medical examiner, was killed. The one who called her psycho."

"Then why save Bill Forbes?" I asked, "If she was going to kill him then why give him vampire blood."

"I don't know what to think." Ric said, " But we would be idiots to ignore all of these facts."

"So what are we gonna do?" Elena asked

"Well, we should get this to the police." he said holding up the knife, " Then you two should probably be with Caroline."

I'm sorry about Meredith, Ric." I said, "Be careful."

Then Elena and I headed over to Care's.

* * *

><p>"So…" Elena started as we walked to Care's, " How do your visions work?"<p>

"Elena, if I knew how to answer that question I would be so much better off." I replied

" Can you make yourself have a vision?"

"I don't know." I said honestly, " I've never really tried."

"I think you should try." Elena said, " I mean the more you understand it the easy it would be."

"I guess your right." I said hesitantly, " But I wouldn't even know where to start."

" Maybe if you think of someone you can trigger it." she suggested

" It's worth a shot." I said

I closed my eyes and started thinking about Damon and what he could possibly be doing right now.

_A doorbell rang at Klaus's mansion and Elijah went to answer it. He opened the door and Damon and Stefan were standing on the porch._

"_Niklaus, our guests have arrived." Elijah said, ushering Damon and Stefan in_

"_Damon, Stefan." Klaus said as he came in, " Elijah tells me you seek an audience. Very bold. Let's discuss the terms of our agreement like civilized men, shall we?"_

_Klaus turned, showing Damon and Stefan a dining table that had been set up for the four of them._

"_It's better to indulge him." Elijah told them."_

"_I didn't come here to eat, Klaus." Stefan said, " In fact, I didn't want to come at all but I as told I had to so you would hear us out."_

" _Well, we can sit and eat or I can reach down your throats and pull out your insides." Klaus threatened, "The choice is yours."_

" It worked." I said to Elena as I came back, " Unfortunately I didn't really like what I saw."

"What did you see?" She asked

"Damon, Stefan, Elijah, and Klaus all having dinner." I said while taking out my phone, " Very weird."

_Don't let Stef's stupidity_

_Get you killed_

_Audrey;D_

* * *

><p>"Did you ever hear back from Tyler?" Elena asked Care as we sat on her front porch<p>

"No, but I've left him messages everywhere." Care replied, " So does Alaric really think Dr. Fell did it?"

" He doesn't know what to think." I told her

" What about you guys."

" I wish the girl Alaric liked wasn't in the middle of this." Elena said, " He deserves to be happy."

"But she looks really guilty." I added, " It's why I told your mom."

" My mom's in there sitting with my dad. I don't think they've been in the same room together for this long since I was ten years old." she said with a laugh, " Do you think Tyler did it?"

"What?" I asked, wondering if she was serious

"If Klaus is trying to mess with you and he is sired to Klaus…" she trailed off, " I mean he does everything he's told."

"No." Elena said, " No, I don't think he did it."

"Neither do I." I told Caroline

We sat there in silence for a few minutes.

"I can't just let my father die." Caroline said abruptly, " You know what, I'm gonna force him to feed."

"He doesn't want to , Caroline." Elena said, " The only thing your dad has left is his choice."

"I hated him so much for what he did to me ... so much... and now all I want to do is save his life."

"Of course you do." I told her, "He's your dad."

"What was the hardest part for you two?" Care asked Elena and I , " When you both lost your dads."

"When you realize all the things he's not gonna be there for." Elena said

"The things you just need your dad for." I added, " You know?"

Elena and I both leaned in and gave Caroline a hug as she began to sob. A few minutes later Matt came up and Caroline got up and wrapped her arms around him.

* * *

><p>"Thanks for walking us home." I told Matt as we walked onto the porch<p>

"You doing okay?" Matt asked us, " This has to bring up a lot for you two."

"We've lost a lot." Elena said

"It's this town." Matt said, " It's messed up! None of us should have to live this way."

We walked into the house and I tried to turn the light on but when I flipped the switch nothing happened.

"That's weird." I commented

"The electricity must be out." Matt said

We continued into the kitchen and grabbed some flashlights from the cupboard.

"Here." Elena said, " I think we have some candles over here."

Matt and I followed her and we all stopped when we saw a puddle of blood in the middle of the floor.

"Oh my God!" Elena exclaim

"What the h*ll? " Matt said

I looked at the wall and saw bloody hand prints.

"Look." I said pointing towards the wall

Matt and Elena looked at the wall before looking at each other and grabbing knives.

"Screw knives." I said grabbing my machete from it's hiding spot, " Ric could be in danger, it's time to bring out the big guns."

"Where did you get that?" Matt asked me

"Matt, now is not the time to ask such pointless questions." I told him, " Now is the time for action."

"Nicely said." Elena said before we started following the blood marks

We walked around the corner and into the living room and the trail of blood continued up the stairs where we found Ric laying in the doorway of his room with a knife sticking out of his chest.

"Ric!" I said before dropping my machete and running over to him, " Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God."

I tried to pull the knife out but Ric yelled.

"Audrey, don't." Elena told me, "He's lost to much blood."

"I'm gonna call 911." Matt said, taking out his cell

" Ric buddy, look at me." I said, trying to keep him awake " Who did this to you?"

"I don't know." he chocked out

"Oh my God, Matt." Elena said coming over to us, "There's a lot of blood."

"I know, Elena." Matt said, " I know."

"You have to kill me." Ric told me

"What?"

"Audrey, you have to kill me." he repeated

I turned towards Matt.

"Wait." I said, " Matt hang up."

"Audrey, he's gonna die." Elena argued

"Nom he's right Elena." I told her, " If he dies a supernatural death then he'll come back to life and he'll be healed."

"Well, how do we know that the person who did this was supernatural?" Matt asked

"That's what he's saying." I said, " We don't but…I'm a psychic." I picked up Elena's knife that she had dropped, " That makes me supernatural."

"Audrey!" Matt said, " That's messed up."

"He's dying, Matt!." I shouted, tears streaming down my face

Then I took the knife and drove it throw his heart.

* * *

><p>While Matt, Elena, and I were waiting for Ric to come back I focused my attention on Damon and Stefan.<p>

_The first thing I saw was Klaus holding Stefan's hand into the fire as it began to burn._

"_Go ahead, kill me." Stefan hissed, " I know you'll do it when he brings the coffin."_

"_You really have given up, haven't you?" Klaus asked pulling him away from the fire, " Where's the fight? Where's the ripper?"_

_Stefan pushed Klaus away from him and Elijah and Damon walked in._

"_Elijah." Klaus said, " Why haven't you left?"_

"_Where are your manners brother?" Elijah asked, " We forgot dessert."_

_A woman came in holding a golden tray revealing two daggers._

"_What have you done?" Klaus asked Elijah_

"_What have you done? See, I've learned not to trust your vulgar promises, Klaus." Elijah said, " We're doing this my way now."_

_Then Kol walked into the room._

"_Kol." Klaus said_

"_Long time brother." he said_

_Then another man with long wavy hair came in and went towards Klaus._

"_Finn don't." Klaus warned before Finn stabbed him in the hand with one of the daggers_

_Klaus ripped out the stake and turned around only to be staked by Rebekah._

"_Rebekah!"_

"_This is for our mother." she said_

"_You're free to go know." Elijah told Damon and Stefan and they headed for the door, " This is family business."_

"He's still down?" I heard Matt asked as I came back

I nodded

"Caroline called." Elena said, " Her dad died. Would you stay with us? Until he walks up."

"Of course." Matt said, taking a seat next to us

"I can't lose anyone else." Elena cried and Matt and eye wrapped our arms around her

* * *

><p>I called Liz a few minutes later to see where Meredith had been for the past few hours.<p>

"I looked into it Audrey." Liz said, "Meredith Fell was called in a surgery six hours ago, she's been in there even since."

"So she has an alibi?" I asked

"And an operating room full of witnesses." Liz added

"Then who could be?"

"I don't know, but the attack of Alaric makes us the third guy on the founder council and we just cleared our only suspect."

I looked over at Ric and he gasped and sat up. I hung up the phone and ran over to him.

* * *

><p>After Matt had gone home and I had made sure Ric was okay I took a shower and went into my room. I walked in and found Damon laying on my bed.<p>

" Hello." I said laying down next to him on my bed

"Hello to you too." he said, giving me a kiss

"So, how was your dinner with Elijah and Klaus?" I asked him

" Very eventful." he said

" I saw, the Original family is back." I said, " Did Bonnie and Abby ever figure out what was in the coffin?"

"When we went to check on them, they were unconscious and the coffin was empty." Damon said, " So I guess we'll have to just wait and see."

" Well, not necessarily." I told him

"What do you have in mind?"

"Elena helped me figure out how to trigger my visions." I said, " So maybe I can see who was in that coffin."

" I guess that's worth a try." Damon said hesitantly

" Okay." I said sitting up ,closing my eyes, and focusing on the coffin.

"_I love what you've done with the new place, Nik." Rebekah said before picking up a vase and throwing it at the wall_

"_I wanted it to be for all of us." Klaus said, " A place we could all be a family. None of us would ever have to be alone again."_

"_Well you right." Elijah said, "None of us will be."_

"_You're staying behind." Finn told him_

"_We're leaving you, Nik." Rebekah said, " Right after I kill that psychic wench. Then you will be alone. Always and forever."_

"_If you run I will hunt you all down." Klaus said_

"_Then you will become the one thing you hate," Elijah said, " our father."_

" _I am the hybrid." Klaus yelled, " I can't be killed. I have nothing to fear!"_

"_You will when we have that coffin." Elijah said coolly_

_Suddenly there was a loud bang as a woman comes through the door._

" _Mother?" Rebekah asked_

_The woman walked into the house and right up to Klaus._

"_Look at me." she ordered, " Do you know why I'm here?"_

"_To kill me." Klaus said, plainly_

"_Niklaus, you are my son." she said, " And I am here to forgive you."_

_Then she turned around to face the rest of her children._

" _I want us all to be a family again."_

" Oh my God." I said as the vision ended, " Oh my God."

" What is it Audrey?" Damon asked, holding my face in his hands

"I know who was in the coffin." I told him, " Momma Original."

**Authors Note**

**Update just in time for thursday. Hope you enjoy.**

**Audrey;D**


	14. Dangerous Liaisons

_**Author's Note**_

_**Thank you Grapejuice101, for everything.**_

_**So last chapter Ric was okay but now he isn't because I can always rely on the show to make this writing thing a lot more confusing, but you gotta love those writers and their tricky little plot twists. Damon and Rebekah * shakes head* I'm disappointed in them for that one but I digress. Anyway enough with my angry babbling and on with the chapter. **_

**Chapter Fourteen-Dangerous Liaisons**

"Momma Original." I told Damon

"How is that even possible?" he asked

Before I could say anything Elena barged into the room.

"Hey Audrey, I think we should…" she trailed off as she saw Damon sitting in bed next to me, " Damon."

"Elena." Damon said

"What did you need, Elena?" I asked her, getting out of my bed

"I think we should take Ric to the hospital." she said, looking away from Damon, " Get him checked out and make sure he's okay."

" Okay, just let me get dressed and I'll meet you downstairs." I told her

"Mm-hmm."

She looked over at Damon one more time before walking out of my room and shutting the door. I sighed before sitting on Damon's lap.

" You know you don't really have to go with Elena." Damon said, leaning down and kissing my neck, " You could stay here with me."

"Tempting." I said with a smile, "But as much as I love that idea, if I'm not downstairs in five minutes Elena's gonna come up here and get me." I told him as he continued kissing me

"Let her come." he said, smirking into my neck

"Look, I hate that I have to leave but I do have to make sure that Ric is okay." I said, taking his face in my hands and kissing him before getting off of my bed and grabbing something to change into, " I'll see you tomorrow."

He nodded giving me his super hot half smile before disappearing.

* * *

><p>I walked downstairs and met Elena in the living room with Ric.<p>

" I got this, Elena." I told her, " You can head to bed."

"Are you sure?" she asked

"Yep."

" I say we all stay in." Ric suggested, " Come on, I'm fine."

"We're getting you checked out." I said, " Now, we can do this the easy way or the hard way."

"What's the hard way?" Elena asked me

"Elena, you never want to find out what the hard way is." I told her seriously, then I turned towards Ric, " So what's it gonna be?"

He sighed in defeat, " I'll go willingly."

"Good choice." I said, " Let us go, Ricky boy."

He laughed at his nickname as we headed out to my car.

* * *

><p>After Ric had been checked in Matt called asking if Ric was okay and when I told him we were at the hospital he rushed over. After the doctor said Ric would stay over night I headed into the hall and met up with Matt.<p>

"How's Mr. Saltzman?" Matt asked as soon as he saw me

"Resigned to spending the night under observation. As long as I promise to change the lock in the house." I told him as we walked out to the parking lot, " So I talked to Bonnie earlier, she and her mom are fine. Have you talked to Caroline?"

" She's holding it together, considering how close her and her dad use to be." Matt said, " Any word on who is behind these attacks?"

"No, Sheriff Forbes says there's no real suspect at all." I said, " How are you doing with all of this? I mean, you keep getting dragged into all of this."

" Honestly, I'm kind of lucky." he told me, " The only thing I have to worry about tomorrow is showing up for my shift at the Grill."

"Thanks for everything today." I said, " Really."

"Get home safe." he said, heading off to his truck

"Will do, Matty." I said opening my car door and getting in

I started my car and put it in reverse before backing up and hitting something.

"Oh, my God." I said getting out and heading to the back of my car to see what I had hit but nothing was there.

"What?" I was sure I had hit something

"Drive much?" I heard someone ask and I turned around to see Rebekah

" Rebekah…"

"Surprised?" she asked grabbing my by the throat, " You drove a dagger through my back, Audrey. It hurt."

I screamed as she tried to bite me but before she could she was ripped off of me.

"Elijah!" Rebekah hissed

"Leave." Elijah told her

She just stood where she was, not moving a muscle.

"Are you challenging me?" Elijah asked her

" Your pathetic." Rebekah spat before glaring at me, " Both of you."

Then in the blink of an eye she was gone.

"Well." Elijah began, " I believe we've got a little catching up to do."

* * *

><p>" So it was their mother, Ester, that was locked in the coffin." I informed Stefan and Elena from what I had learned from my vision and Elijah as I stood next to Damon.<p>

"As in the Original witch?" Elena asked

"What?" Stefan asked, " How is she even alive?"

"Thought her hybrid freak show of a son ripped her heart out a thousand years ago." Damon added

"I don't know." I answered them, " But, I'm guessing she had a few connections in the witchy community."

"She was supposed to be the weapon that helped us kill Klaus." Stefan stated

"Well, not anymore." I said, " At least not according to Elijah."

"That coffin was the only thing stopping Klaus from tearing us to shreds." Stefan said

"Anyone else feeling used right now?" Damon asked us

"Look, Elijah promised me that his family wouldn't hurt any of us." I told them

"And do you believe him?" Elena asked me

I heard the doorbell ring.

" Trust is earned and so far he hasn't earned it." I replied before going to answer the door

I opened the door but no one was there, I looked down and saw an envelope with my name on it. I bent down to pick it up and headed back inside. I opened it and it was surprised to find an invitation.

"What is it?" Damon asked me

"It's an invitation." I said, " ' Please join the Mikaelson family this evening at seven o'clock for dancing, cocktails, and celebration."

"Who the h*ll are the Mikaelson's?" Stefan asked

" The Original family." Elena said

"It's not bad enough they're moving into town, now they want a house warming gift?" Damon muttered

I turned the invitation and saw something written on the back.

"Wait, there's a note on the back." I told them, " 'Audrey, I think it's time we finally meet, Esther.'"

* * *

><p>" If Esther wants to talk to me maybe I should find out why." I told Damon, Stefan, and Elena.<p>

" Well that's a dumb idea." Damon said, " She already tried to kill you once."

"No, Audrey's right." Stefan said, " Bonnie was led to open that coffin for a reason. I think it was for more than a family reunion."

"Can we go back to the time when the old Stefan actually cared whether Audrey lived or died?" Damon asked

"That was before." Stefan said, " Now it's your job."

"Stefan has a point, Damon." Elena said

"Exactly. I should at least find out what she wants." I added

"You can't protect yourself." Damon said, moving in front of me

"Okay, fine." Stefan said, " I'll go."

"You've ticked off enough Originals to last a life time." Damon told him, " I'll go."

"Hey!" I exclaimed

Damon turned back to me.

"End of story."

* * *

><p>" It's all so weird." I said to Aurora as we sat at a table in the Grill, " The Originals are throwing a ball. Like an actual ball."<p>

"It's some twisted Cinderella fetish is what it is." Aurora said, " And why does the evil witch want an audience with you?"

"I have no idea but there is only one way to find out."

" I thought you told Stefan and Damon that you weren't going." Aurora said

" I did." I told her, " Which is all the more reason I need a drama free bodyguard."

"Well, I would think a Salvatore would look better in a tux." she told me

" Ugh, I can't deal with either of the Salvatore brothers." I told her, " Whatever Stefan is feeling he is channeling towards Klaus. And Damon is being annoyingly overprotective."

" Well, he is your boyfriend." Aurora pointed out, " I still can't believe you didn't tell me."

" I was going to but after everything that has happened lately…"

"Audrey, when you and Ian Brady kissed for the first time in Freshman year you called me the second it happened." Aurora said, " And now I don't hear about you and Damon for a month, and from somebody else."

"I'm sorry." I said, " I just…I didn't want you to go on a rant about how bad for me Damon is."

"It doesn't matter how I feel about him." she said, " If you love him I guess I can tolerate him."

"Thanks. I just miss when everything was so much easier."

" Careful Aurora." Rebekah said, coming up to us, " It's all well and good until she stabs you in the back."

"What are you doing here?" I sneered, " I know your mom's rules, no killing the locals."

"Get over yourself, Audrey. It's not all about you." She said before walking over to Matt and handing him an invitation.

"Oh my God, she's inviting him to the ball." Aurora said, " Why is she inviting him?"

"Probably to get this reaction out of us."

* * *

><p>"So you're not gonna go to the dance?" I asked Elena as I did my hair<p>

"No." she replied, " I think I've had enough murderous Originals for a lifetime."

"Suit yourself." I told her, " As long as your not going you should go check on Ric and tell him I say hey."

"Will do." she said as she headed downstairs.

After she had left I got dressed in my black ball gown, black gloves, shawl and my necklace before heading of the Mikaelson's mansion.

~line break~

I walked into the mansion and a woman the Originals had hired took my shall. I thanked her and turned to find Esther when I walked into Stefan.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him

" I could ask you the same question." he retorted

"Surprise, Surprise." Damon said, joining us, " You shouldn't be here."

"Well, I am." I told him, " And I'm not leaving until I find out what Esther wants. So shall we?"

Damon offered me his arm and a hooked arms with him before doing the same with Stefan. Then we all walked together through the ball.

* * *

><p>" Audrey Darke I presume." One of Klaus's brothers said handing me a glass of champagne, " I'm Finn Mikaelson. You're here to see my mother."<p>

"Is she here?" I asked him

"Her request did not include your friends."

" There protecting me." I explained, " You may not know this but she has already tried to kill me once."

"If you want to see my mother, you'll need to be alone." he said

" If everyone could gather, please." I heard Elijah say from the stairs

"Excuse me." Finn said before joining his family on the stairs.

"Welcome, thank you for joining us." Elijah said, "You know whenever my mother brings our family together like this, its tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance."

As Elijah was talking I saw Esther walk down the stairs and join her children.

"Tonight's pick is a centuries old waltz." Elijah continued, " So if you could all please find yourselves a partner. Please join us in the ballroom."

When Esther began to go back upstairs I tried to follow her but was stopped by Damon.

"Don't even think about it." he said

"She wants to see me alone, Damon." I told him

"Well, it sucks to be her." Damon said, " Was I not clear this morning?"

" I was invited."

" You have to tell me before you walk into a lion's den." he said

"Why, so you can stop me?" I snapped

"Uhh…Yes!" he hissed

I glared at him for a moment before he smirked and help out his hand.

"It would be rude not to dance ya know." he told me

" It is tradition." I said, unable to resist smiling at him as I took his hand and walking with him into the ballroom.

* * *

><p>"You look stunning, if isn't obvious." Damon said as we danced<p>

"Thank you." I said, " You don't look half bad yourself."

" Half bad?" he said, sounding offended, " You know I look downright sexy."

"It's true." I said, " You've always looked irresistible in a suit."

We continued to dance and when it was time to switch partners I found myself in Stefan's arms.

"He dances." I said, " And no one even had to beg him."

"Well, Mayor Lockwood dragged me out here. I couldn't exactly say no." he said, " Took you about thirty seconds to put Damon in a mood."

"He's just looking out for me." I explained

"I think he needs to figure out that you can look out for yourself."

" I need to talk to you." I whispered to Stefan

"Okay, so talk." he said

"Not here." I said before leading him outside

* * *

><p>" If Esther is secretly on our side we need to know." I told Stefan when we where far enough from the party, " But I can't get to her with two bodyguards."<p>

" Why are you telling me this?" Stefan asked

"Because Damon won't let me anywhere near her without protection." I said, " And you care more about killing Klaus then anything." I looked up at his face and it looked like he was conflicted, " What am I wrong?"

"No, you not wrong." he said, " What do you need me to do?"

"Make sure that can get into that room." I said, " Alone."

" You sure you can do this?"

" I can do this." I told him, " When we were friends you let me make my own decisions. You trusted me. After all of this at least that hasn't changed."

Then I turned around and head back to the ball.

* * *

><p>" Got your text." Damon said as he entered the library, " What are we doing here?"<p>

Suddenly Stefan came out and snapped Damon's neck.

"Well, you should hurry, he won't be down for long." Stefan said

I nodded and headed over to Damon. I bent down and kissed him on the check and said, " I'm sorry." before standing and looking at Stefan one more time and heading out of the room.

* * *

><p>As I was heading to meet Esther I ran into Elijah.<p>

"Audrey, I understand my mother requested to see you." he said

"Do you think that it's an act?" I asked him

" It has me asking questions I never thought I would ask." he replied, "Can I depend on you to tell me what she says?"

"Of course." I told him, " I'll find you later, okay?"

He nodded and I continued on my way.

* * *

><p>When I got upstairs I knocked on the door and Finn answered.<p>

"You're alone." he said, " Wise choice."

I entered the room and saw that Esther was burning something.

"It's only sage. I've spelled it so we can speak freely without fear of being overheard." Esther explained, " That will be all, Finn." Finn nodded and closed the door after he left, " You must have a million questions for me, Audrey. Please."

She gestured towards the sofa and I took a seat.

"How are you alive?" I asked her, " Are you a ghost?"

"Not exactly." She replied, " When I died the witch Ayanna preserved my body with a spell. She was a close friend of mine and an ancestor of your friend Bonnie."

" So that's why only Bonnie and her mother could open up the casket." I realized

"They complete the Bennett bloodline." Esther said, " I drew power from them and their ancestors who were with me on the other side."

"So you've been on the other side for a thousand years?"

"Natures way of punishing me for turning my family into vampires." She said, " But there is a way for me to undo the evil I have created."

"You're gonna help kill Klaus, aren't you?" I asked her

"One thing at a time, Audrey." she said, " For now I simply need your help."

* * *

><p>" I understand Rebekah shared the story of my family." Esther said pouring a glass of champagne, " How I upset the balance of nature by turning my children into vampires."<p>

" She said that you did that to protect them from the werewolves." I said

"It's true." she replied, " But in no time at all they began to feed on human blood. They ravaged the town with no remorse. Eventually Niklaus turned against me."

"How are you gonna kill him? He's immortal."

" It will take time." she told me, " Magic and your assistance."

"What do I have to do with it?"

"My children believe I'm holding this ball to celebrate our reunion. But in truth I've gathered them together to perform a ritual." she started, " The first step requires blood from the psychic. Only a drop. Its essence will be in the champagne toast later on this evening." she held out a knife, "Will you do it or shall I?"

I held out my hand and she pricked my finger and put a drop of blood in the glass of champagne.

"Elijah is more suspicious than the others so he may need more persuasion." she said, "But they must all drink at the toast in order to be linked as one."

" What do you mean, 'linked as one' ?" I asked her

" You said yourself Klaus can not be killed." she said, " But tonight's spell will link all my children together, so if one goes, they all go."

" What?"

" I love my family, Audrey. But they are an abomination." Esther said, " I betrayed nature when I created them. It's my duty to kill them."

* * *

><p>After I was done talking to Esther I headed back downstairs. I wasn't down there for long before I had a vision.<p>

_Damon groaned as he woke up in the library and glared up at Stefan._

" _Easy." Stefan warned him, " Don't want you to do anything stupid."_

_Damon charged at him and held him against one of the book cases._

"_Where's Audrey?" he asked_

"_Exactly where she belongs." Stefan replied, " Talking with Esther."_

"_What did you do?"_

" _Awe, don't blame me." Stefan told him, " This was all her. Right down to the broken neck. You know, maybe you should stop being such a controlling boyfriend."_

"_Wait, hang on here, I'm the problem here?"_

"_You're a liability brother." Stefan said_

" _I'm trying to keep her alive Stefan!" Damon exclaimed_

" _I am too, but I'm letting her make her own decisions." he said, " Anyway, your emotions are getting in the way of our plan."_

"_My emotions!" Damon yelled, " How is this even happening right now?"_

" _Maybe because you care too d*mn much." Stefan suggested_

As my vision faded I saw Elijah walking towards me.

'_Terrific, just what I need.' _I thought

"So, how was my mother?" Elijah said, coming up to me

"Intense."

"And for what reason did she need to speak to you alone?" as he talked I caught sight of Esther coming down the stairs, "Audrey?" I turned back to Elijah, " Should I be concerned about my mothers intensions?"

" She jus wanted to apologize for trying to have me killed." I lied

"So it's true then?" he asked, " She's forgiven Klaus?"

" It's true."

" Good evening ladies and gentlemen." Esther greeted from the staircase, " Waiters are coming around with champagne. I invite you all to join me in raising a glass." Elijah and I took a glass as a waiter stopped in front of us, " It provides me with no greater joy then to see my family back together as one." I couldn't stop myself from rolling my eyes at this, " I'd like to thank you for being part of this fantastic evening. Cheers!"

" Cheers!" Everyone repeated

"Cheers." Elijah said raising his class to me before taking a sip

* * *

><p>I was standing in the foyer, looking for the chick that took my shawl, when Damon came up to me.<p>

"Audrey, did you get what you wanted?" he asked angrily, handing me my shawl

" Actually, I did." I said

" Good, tell me on the ride home." he said grabbing my arm forcefully, " It's time to leave."

" Damon, let go of me." I said, removing my arm, " look, I'm sorry that I had to cut you out of the plan."

"There shouldn't have been a plan." he said, "You shouldn't be here."

"Do you think I like going behind your back?" I asked him, "I don't. But if I hadn't asked Stefan to help you would've tried to be the hero and it would've ruined everything."

"Sorry for trying to keep you alive." Damon said sarcastically, " Clearly Stefan doesn't give a crap anymore."

"Now your mad at me for including Stefan?"

" No , I'm mad because I love you!" Damon shouted

"Well maybe that's the problem." I snapped but immediately regretted it when I saw pain flash across his face, " No, Damon, I didn't mean that."

"No, I get it Audrey." he said coldly, " I care too much, I'm a liability. How ironic is that?"

" Damon…" I started but was cut off by Caroline

" Hey, have you guys seen Matt?" she asked us

* * *

><p>Damon left quickly after Caroline had arrived and a few minutes later I saw everyone moving outside. I followed everyone out and saw Kol on the ground and Damon standing over him.<p>

"Damon!" Stefan exclaimed, " Are you crazy?"

" Maybe." Damon replied, looking up at me, " Far from me to cause a problem."

I sighed as he turned around and walked away.

* * *

><p>" So, Esther wants to kill her whole family." Stefan said as we walked into my house, " How is that for mother of the year?"<p>

" Yeah." I said, " And I got to look Elijah right in the eye and lie to him."

"Well, good." Stefan said, " I can't say I'll be sorry to see any of them go."

" I just signed their death sentences, Stefan." I told him

" No, you signed Klaus's death sentence, Audrey. Everyone else is collateral damage."

" It's not that simple." I said

" Their family has brought you nothing but darkness, Audrey. It is that simple." he told me, " So, where's Damon? I would think he that he's wanna make sure you got home safely."

" I'll call him and let him know." I said, not really wanting to talk about Damon

" What was with him going after Kol?"

" Damon being self-destructive." I explained, " I said something I didn't mean."

" So did I ." Stefan muttered, " Anyway, um, good night."

He headed out the door but I ran after him.

" Stefan." I called as I walked onto the porch, " Did you really not feel anything?"

"When?"

"How do you do that?" I asked him curiously, " Act like you don't care, like you don't feel anything? Because I can't do that. After everything you've done, I still think of you as my older brother that would do anything to protect me."

" Audrey, stop." Stefan said

" I'm not going to stop, Stefan." I told him, " Because I don't believe that you feel nothing."

" What, do you think I want to be this person?" he asked me, " I hurt you, Audrey. I bit you. I hate myself for what I did to you."

" Then show it! Do something , Stefan, anything is better then trying to convince me that you don't care."

" I can't." Stefan whispered

"Stefan…" I started

" If I let my self care," Stefan said, cutting me off, " all I feel is pain."

I watched Stefan as he turned around and headed home.

* * *

><p>I was walking to my room to change out of my ball gown when I started having another vision.<p>

"_Look, I'm really sorry about Kol." Rebekah told Matt as he sat at the bar in the Grill, "He's a lunatic."_

" _Rebekah, you're really fun and pretty and all , but I really need you to leave me alone." Matt said before standing up and leaving._

"_Burn." Damon said, coming up behind Rebekah with a bottle of bourbon, " Rejected by the captain of the football team. Welcome to adolescence."_

" _Shut up, Damon." Rebekah told him, " Knew I should have killed him. Mother wouldn't let me."_

" _Well, never let people tell you what to do." he said pouring shots for him and Rebekah, " Besides, you would have broken him in an second."_

" _Are you suggesting I can't be gentle?" Rebekah asked him_

"_No, I'm just saying that you should find someone that's a little more durable." he said, " That's all."_

" _And who would that be?"_

_The next thing I saw was Damon and Rebekah making out in his room. Not wasting anytime Rebekah ripped off Damon's shirt as she continued to kiss him._

I felt the tears stream down my face as I came back to reality. I began to sob as I leaned against one off the walls and slid to the floor. A few minutes later I heard someone walking towards me. I looked up to see Aurora sit down next to me.

"What happened?" she asked sincerely

"Damon…cheated on me… with Rebekah." I told her in between sobs

Aurora shook her head before wrapping her arms around me.

" He's an idiot, Audrey." she said trying to comfort me, " He doesn't deserve you."

" I never want to see him again!" I cried into her shoulder

**Author's Note**

**Stupid writers of the vampire diaries. First you have Elena totally reject Damon, then have Damon hook up with Rebekah. Why? Why must they do this to us. All we want is Delena epicness and they give us Dabekah. Anyway, hope you like it. Review, because reviewing makes everything in life better ( for me anyway) but it will eventually make life better for you when I update quickly. So go ahead, review, and I will see you next week. ( unless you PM me, in which case I'll get back to you ASAP.)**

**P.S. if you guys have any suggestions for this story you can always send it to me and it may end up in the story.**

**Audrey;D**


	15. All My Children

**Chapter Fifteen- All My Children**

I woke the next morning in my bed still wearing my dress from last night. I must have fallen asleep and Aurora brought me in here. I groaned before standing up and walking into my bathroom to take a shower. After I was done I walked back into my room and changed into a pair of red skinny jeans, black Psych tee shirt, and black converses before calling Stefan and waking downstairs.

"Hey, Stefan, it's Audrey." I said , entering the kitchen as it went to voicemail ," I really need to talk to you. Call me back."

I hung up the phone and put it in my pocket before turning towards the freezer and taking out a container of cookie dough ice cream, grabbing a spoon, and digging in.

"How are you?" Aurora asked me sincerely from her spot at the table

"I'm fine." I lied, taking another bite of my ice cream, " All I want to do is sit here and have breakfast with my friends Ben and Jerry, before heading over to the boarding house."

"Audrey, are you sure that's a good idea?" Aurora asked

"Nope." I told her, " But I have to talk to Stefan so…"

I took one more bite before putting the ice cream back and heading towards the door. Before I could make it Aurora was standing in front of me.

" This vampire speed thing is really freaky." I muttered

Aurora ignored my comment, " I'll let you go to the boarding house on one condition."

"And what would that be?"

"Hand over your weapon." She stated, holding out her hand

"I have no idea what you're talking ab-"

"Audrey…" she cut me off

I sighed before taking the stake out of my back pocket and handing it over.

"Happy?" I said before trying to walk past her but being stopped again

"The other one too." she demanded

I bent down and took the other stake from my shoe.

" I wasn't gonna kill him." I said earning a look from Aurora, " I swear! I was just gonna teach him a lesson."

" I'm so sure." she said sarcastically, moving out of my way.

I looked at her one more time before heading out to my car.

* * *

><p>I walked up to the boarding house , after my short drive, trying to put a mask of indifference over the pain that I was feeling . I was about to knock on the door when a shirtless Damon opened it and standing next to him was Rebekah, wearing her dress from last night. As much as I tried to hide the pain, I was sure that it flashed across my face when I saw them both.<p>

* * *

><p>" Did you stop talking vervain?" I asked Damon hopefully as we stood in the parlor after Rebekah had left.<p>

" You think Rebekah had to compel me?"

" I was hoping!" I snapped, " Maybe I thought you cared about me enough to not go and sleep with someone that tried to kill me less then forty-eight hours ago!"

" Can we just move past that, Audrey?"

I laughed once, without humor, " Sure Damon, let's move past it for a minute." I said, " I came over to talk to you and Stefan about Ester killing her family. She cast a spell that linked them all together. Whatever happens to one happens to all of them. "

" Well, that's great." Damon said, pouring himself drink, "Klaus will finally be dead. We win. Why do you look like someone just shot a panda bear?"

" Because, to kill Klaus she has to kill all of them, including Elijah." I explained, "And he doesn't deserve this."

"And I'm supposed to care about Elijah?" Damon asked me

" Shouldn't you at least care about Rebekah?"

" Two seconds ago you were ticked that she attacked you." Damon said, " It's a win-win"

" Actually Damon, two seconds ago I was angry at you for cheating on me with Rebekah!" I retorted, " But it doesn't matter anymore Damon because we're done and I'm out of here."

I headed to the door but was quickly slammed against the wall by Damon.

"What the h*ll is your problem?" I yelled, " Let go of me!"

"No." he said calmly

"Damon, let go of me!" I repeated, trying to get free, with no luck, " Let go of me!"

"You're not going to screw up Esther's plan." Damon told me

" Go to h*ll and let go of me." I spat

"Let her go, Damon." Stefan said as he entered the room

Damon looked at me for a few more seconds before backing up.

" He's right, you know." Stefan said, " Klaus has to die. They all do."

" See?" Damon asked, " Democracy in action."

I shook my head at both of them before walking past them and out of the boarding house.

* * *

><p>After I left the boarding house I headed home and met with Bonnie and Caroline, who I had called to see if we could recreate Esther's privacy spell.<p>

" He didn't even care. It was like I didn't mean anything to him." I ranted to Bonnie, " Is it working?"

" It's not working." Care said, entering the room, " I can here every word you're saying about Damon, the vampire gigolo."

" It's a tricky spell." Bonnie said from her spot on my bed

" When Esther did it she kept the sage burning." I told her, " There was a lot more smoke."

"Alright." Bonnie said, relighting the sage, " We'll try it again."

Care groaned before walking back into the hall.

"Speaking of Esther," Bonnie started, " you should know that she came to see me and Abby this morning."

"And all this time you let me vent about Damon?" I asked

" I didn't want you to worry about it." Bonnie said

" Well, what did see want?" I asked her

" She just wanted to introduce herself." Bonnie began to explain, " Abby and I helped bring her back. She's channeling our entire ancestral bloodline for power. I think she thought she was being polite."

"Okay, well, is there a way to stop her from channeling you?" I asked her

"Even if I could, why would I want to?"

"I just keep thinking…. Before the sun and moon ritual, Elijah found a way to keep me alive. And now I'm in the exact same position and I'm just gonna let him die?" I said, " It just doesn't feel right."

" Okay, first, this privacy spell is totally not working." Caroline said, coming back in, " Second, Audrey, you're not doing this, Esther is doing this."

" There's no time to change your mind, Audrey." Bonnie added, " He'll be dead by the end of the night."

" What?"

" It's a full moon." Bonnie said, " Esther needs a celestial event. She asked me and Abby to join her.

* * *

><p>A few minutes after Bonnie and Caroline had taken off I heard a knock at the door. I answered it and standing on the porch was Elijah.<p>

" Audrey." he said

"Elijah."

" I don't mean to intrude." Elijah stated, " I was hoping you might accompany me. I want to show you something"

* * *

><p>Elijah stopped his car in the middle of the woods and we both got out.<p>

" I forgot how much I missed this land." he said as we walked

" I can't even imagine what it must have looked like a thousand years ago." I told him

"You know, your school was built over an Indian village." He explained, "Where I saw my first werewolf. The town square is where the natives would gather to worship. Matter of fact, near that, there was a field where wild horses use to graze."

" That's incredible." I commented, " Do you know this place, too?"

" I do. Below us is a cavern I used to play in as a boy. Connects to a system of tunnels that stretch across the entire area. Perhaps it's nature's way of providing us with shelter against the savagery of the full moon." he said, " My mother said there must be a balance."

" Elijah, I should probably go home." I said, concerned of where this conversation could be going

" I admire you, Audrey." Elijah said, ignoring me, " You remind me of qualities I valued long before my mother turned us. It's not in your nature to be deceitful and yet when I asked about your meeting with my mother the other night, you lied to my face."

" That's not true." I lied again, " I told you that all your mother wanted was a new start."

"I can hear you heartbeat. It jumps when you're being dishonest with me. You lied to me at the ball, you are lying to me now. Tell me the truth." he said, coming to stand in front of me

"I never wanted this to happed." I whispered

"What, Audrey?" Elijah asked

"We were told that whatever was going to be in that coffin was going to kill Klaus. When we found out that it was your mother… We didn't know what to think."

"Since her return she says she only wants this family whole again." Elijah said

" When she asked to see me, I thought that maybe she could help." I informed him, " That she would find a way to kill Klaus. It's not just Klaus that she wants to kill."

" She wants to kill us all, doesn't she?" Elijah asked but I didn't answer, " She wants to undo the evil she created."

" I'm so sorry, Elijah." I told him honestly, " I wish there was something I could do to help.

"You know, one thing I've learned with my time on this Earth… be careful what you wish for."

Then Elijah broke a hole in the ground before grabbing me and jumping in.

* * *

><p>As soon as Elijah had left I took out my cell phone to call for help but there was no signal. I quickly gave up on that and started walking around the tunnels, looking for a way out. After a few minutes I saw a light towards the end and tried to run to it but was blocked by Rebekah.<p>

"Going somewhere?" she asked

"What are you doing here?" I asked her

"Not much." she replied, "Unless you try to run. In which case, I get to kill you."

* * *

><p>"Alright love." Rebekah said, recording me with her phone, as I sat on the ground " Now look into the camera."<p>

" What are you doing?" I asked her, annoyed

" Shooting a picture to inspire your boyfriends." she explained, "Why don't you tell them how delightful it is being stuck in a hole with your biggest fan?"

" I guess you think I had this coming?" I asked her, " After what I did to you?"

"You know, I don't know what I want more, to find out we're saved or to find out it's alright to kill you."

"This isn't my fault. I wanted to get rid of Klaus." I told her, standing and walking towards her, "At one point, so did you. I didn't know that your mom was planning on killing all of you."

"Do you think I want to spend what could be the last few hours of my life having idle chit-chat with a girl who literally stabbed me in the back?" Rebekah asked me, " Of course not! But for some reason, everybody seems to want to bend over backwards to save your life, which is incredibly annoying, but makes you the perfect hostage. So, why don't you sit down and shut up before I ruin everything by ripping your head off."

I looked at her before backing away and taking a seat on the floor once more.

* * *

><p>I was sitting when all of a sudden Rebekah gasped and began turning gray like when I had daggered her. When she was down I got up and ran as fast as I could.<p>

"You can't hide, Audrey." I heard Rebekah yell as I continued to run

Then I fell over a rock and tried to be as quiet as possible.

"Not sure way I'm feeling under the weather." Rebekah continued, " Must be your boys trying to find a loophole. Won't matter, I can chase you down on my worst days."

I stood up and noticed the cave with the Native American drawings and ran towards it. Unfortunately, before I could enter, Rebekah grabbed me from behind. I turned around and punched her in the face before stumbling into the cave.

"You little b*tch." she said trying to walk into the cave but being stopped by the barrier, " What is this?"

" Sorry, no vampire's allowed."

* * *

><p>It had been about fifteen minutes since I last saw Rebekah so I headed towards the entrance with my flashlight to look around.<p>

"Audrey!" Rebekah exclaimed as she returned with a canister of gasoline, " Let's pick up where we left off."

She opened the gas and started to pour it in the cave.

"What are you doing?"

"Going to shake things up a bit." she replied before throwing some gasoline on me

"Are you insane?" I shouted

" I prefer spontaneous." she said, " It's probably why Damon likes me so much."

Then she threw the canister and I ducked before it could hit me. I looked back at Rebekah and saw her lighting a match.

"Here's what's going to happen." she began, throwing the match in and starting the cave on fire, " You're gonna come out." she lit another match and threw it in, " Or your going to burn."

After a few minutes the fire went out and she lit a third match.

"This one's going on you." she told me, taking out her phone again and recording me, " So, Elena, how does it feel to know that these may be your last moments?"

" I don't know, you tell me." I said, " You're the one whose mother is trying to kill you."

" You should be very careful about what you say to me." Rebekah warned

"You're still wearing her necklace." I observed

" Do you want it? Is that your last request?" She asked, ripping off her necklace and throwing it into the cave, " Here. It's all yours."

" She's not doing this because she hates you, Rebekah." I told her, "She told me that she… she just doesn't have any other choice."

" Spare me your pity, Audrey." Rebekah snapped, "We're not girlfriends. Want me to prove it? Just say the word." she gestured to her lit match

"You're not gonna do it." I said

"And why is that?" she asked

"Because there's still a chance that you might be alive tomorrow. And if that's the case and you kill me now, you'll have used up all of your revenge. Wasted it and isn't that what you want? Revenge?" I asked her, stepping closer to the barrier, "Because I pretended to like you and then I stuck a dagger in your back. I mean, that's why you slept with Damon, isn't it? That's why you're tormenting me, because I hurt your feelings."

The match burned out and Rebekah dropped it.

" The tough act doesn't suit you." Rebekah sneered

"Oh, honey, it's not an act." I told her, " But we both know I'm right."

* * *

><p>" You can come out now." Rebekah said after a few minutes, " Seems your boys took care of the problem."<p>

" How did they do that?"

" Damon turned your witch friend's mother into a vampire." she replied

"What?"

"Quite clever, actually. They needed to sever the witch line and, well, you can't be a witch and a vampire." Rebekah commented, " In any case, you're free to go. Oh and, uh, by the way, you were right. I do prefer taking my time watching you suffer. Much more satisfying."

* * *

><p>As soon as I left I called Elena and she told me that her, Caroline, and Bonnie were at Caroline's house with Abby. I got over there as fast as I could but as I was about to walk in Caroline blocked my way.<p>

" Come on, Caroline."

"She doesn't want to she you." she told me

"Please, just let me talk to her." I pleaded

"Abby's in transition. It's going to be really hard over the next few days and if Bonnie needs some time to deal then I think you should give it to her."

" She's always been there for me, Caroline." I told her, " Please, just let me be there for her too."

"I'm sorry, Audrey. I know that you want to help, but put yourself in her shoes." She said. "Everything that happened tonight was to save you and that's okay because she loves you. So much. But somehow she's always the one who gets hurt."

" Your right." I said, the tears starting to roll down my face " Just tell her I love her and that I am so sorry."

" I will." Caroline replied

I nodded before turning around and heading home.

* * *

><p>As I was walking up to the front door of the house I started having a vision of Damon and Stefan.<p>

" _Is she safe?" Damon asked as he walked into his room where Stefan was standing_

" _Elijah kept his word." Stefan replied, " Rebekah let her go."_

"_Good." Damon sighed in relief, " All's right in the world."_

" _I lost the coin toss, Damon. I should have been the one to turn Abby." Stefan said, " Why did you do it?"_

" _Because I'm not blind." Damon said, "I see what's going on around here. You're hanging by a thread, Stefan. Barely over your last ripper binge and all you want is to be the old Stefan again."_

" _That part of me is gone." Stefan argued_

" _Oh, yeah?" Damon asked skeptically, " How long has it been since you've had a drop of human blood?"_

"_How did you know?"_

" _Spend 146 years with someone, you kind of start to pick up their tells." Damon responded, " Answer the question. How long has it been since your last drink?"_

" _Since the night I threatened to drive Audrey off of Wickery Bridge."_

"_See? You have enough to worry about." Damon said, " Why add to the list. By the way, you're welcome."_

" _You know, you're not fooling anyone either." Stefan told him, " You love her, Damon."_

_Damon was silent for a minute before saying, " I do. But after last night I lost her."_

"_You don't know that." Stefan suggested_

"_Oh, I do brother." Damon said, " She's never going to forgive me."_

_Then Damon turned and left the room._

The tears came faster as I walked into the house and up to my room. I opened my door and found a letter from Elijah sitting on my bed. I picked it up and began to read it.

' Audrey.' it said, 'today I did things I abhor to protect the one thing I value most. My family. If anyone can understand that, it's you. Your compassion is a gift, Audrey. Carry it with you. As I will carry my regret. Always and forever. Elijah.'

* * *

><p>After I read the letter I decided to take a shower and changed into my pajamas before walking into my room and seeing Stefan sitting on my bed.<p>

"Stefan?" I said as he stood up, " What are you doing here?"

" I came to talk to you about Damon." he said

" Stefan…" I started

"Just hear me out, okay?" he asked, and I nodded reluctantly, " He's still in love with you."

I looked out my window, " I know." I said, " I saw your conversation from earlier. But Damon's right, I can't forgive him."

Stefan held my face, making me look at him.

"But you still love him." he said

" Of course I do." I admitted I said, " But after what he did…I just don't know what to do. And now after everything that's happened today it just has me thinking I should pack up and leave."

"Why?"

" Everything that happened today, h*ll, everything that has happened in the last two years is my fault." I said, starting to breakdown, " If I had stayed in Minnesota, my parents would still be alive, Aurora would be human, Abby wouldn't be turned, and Klaus would have never have come to Mystic Falls."

Stefan wrapped his arms around me, " Audrey, none of this is your fault. You couldn't have possibly known that any of this was going to happen, let alone stop it."

I started to fell better at his words, " I missed you Stefan."

He laughed before letting go of me, " I should probably get going."

"Thank you Stefan." I told him as he headed toward the door, " For everything."

He nodded before walking out of my room.

* * *

><p>I fell asleep quickly after my chat with Stefan but it wasn't long before I had another vision.<p>

_I saw Klaus standing near a fire place in the Mikaelson mansion, burning pictures of Caroline, when Rebekah walked in._

" _I thought you'd have gone by now." he said, " Elijah's leaving, Kol's fled, Esther and Finn are gone too…"_

"_I hated you when I learned you killed our mother." she said, " But I realize now that after a thousand years together as a family, you're the only one who never left me." She pulled out her phone and pulled up the video of me in the cave with the drawings all over the walls, " There's something I need you to see."_

" _Come to brag about your skills as a torturer ." Klaus said as Rebekah handed him her phone_

"_Look at the images on the wall behind Audrey." she ordered him, " The Natives told the story of our family history, look at the images on the far wall."_

" _What is it?" Klaus asked her_

" _A Native worshipping at the Great White Oak tree." she explained_

" _And? We burned that tree to the ground."_

"_Look at the markings that precede it." she said, "That's the Native calendar."_

" _That can't be right." Klaus said, looking at the calendar_

" _A White Oak Tree." Rebekah said, " Three hundred years after we fled to the Old World. There must have been a sapling, a new tree to replace the old. That tree could kill us. It's not over, Nik." _

_Then my vision shifted to Ric, who was waking up on someone's couch. He stood up and looked into another room to see Meredith Fell fast asleep. Then he turned and headed to the kitchen and grabbed some aspirin from the cupboard and taking some. As he was heading back to the living room a folder caught his eye. It was Bill Forbes's. He looks through that and found folders belonging to the other victims and finally a knife that was wrapped in a red cloth. Then he heard something and turned to see Meredith pointing a gun at him._

"_You weren't supposed to see that." she said before firing her gun_

**Author's Note**

**And that is the end of Chapter fifteen, I have to say I thought that this episode had one of the best yet ****infuriating endings. Well, tell me what you thought about this chapter, I am very curious to know if I'm doing well with this story. Review, review, review.**

**Audrey;D**

**P.S. if anyone has any vampire diaries story ideas that you want me to write, one shots of full length, do sent them in because I have nothing to do over hiatus. Well, other then school but that has nothing to do with anything so, send away.**


	16. Apologizes and Rejection

**Chapter Sixteen- Apologizes and Rejection**

Elena and I were sitting at a booth in the Grill, taking about anything we could think of, waiting for Matt to bring us out lunch.

"Have you heard from Ric today?" I asked Elena

" No." she relied, " Why do you ask?"

"I had this dream last night about him and I can't remember what it was about for the life of me." I told her, " I just get this bad feeling whenever I think about it."

"It's probably nothing." Elena dismissed nonchalantly

"Yeah." I agreed with her half-heartedly

Then Matt came up to our table with our food.

"One cheese burger for Elena and the Mystic Nachos for Audrey." he said setting our food down in front of us.

"Thanks Matt." Elena said

"You're welcome." Matt smiled, " If you guys need anything else, just call me."

" Will do buddy." I told him before he walked away

Elena and I dug into our food and after a few minutes Elena put down her burger and looked up at me.

"How are you doing?" she asked me, her voice full of concern, " You know, with Damon?"

"I'm fine." I relied sharply

"You know I don't believe that." Elena said, " And neither do you. So how are you really?"

" I'm angry, Elena." I admitted, " I'm angry at him for cheating on me and I'm angry at myself because, even though he did, I miss him."

" Audrey…" Elena groaned

"Don't worry." I told her, " I learned my lesson. I'm not gonna let him hurt me again."

"Mm-hmm." Elena replied before frowning at something behind me

I turned around to see what Elena was looking at and saw that Damon had just walked into the Grill.

"You wanna get out of here?" Elena asked me

I nodded before standing and setting a few bills down to pay for our lunch. We grabbed our stuff and headed for the door, but, unfortunately, before we could get there someone grabbed my arm. I looked up, already knowing who it was but hoping I was wrong, and was face to face with Damon.

"If you aren't to busy avoiding me do you think that you could let me apologize?" Damon asked me

" Let her go, Damon." Elena snapped

" I wasn't talking to you." Damon glared at her before turning back to me, " Please, just give me five minutes."

I looked at Damon for a few minutes before nodding, "Five minutes, no more."

" Audrey, you can't be serious!" Elena exclaimed

" I've got this Elena." I replied, turning to look at her

Elena just shook her head in disappointment before leaving.

" I'm here and I'm not going anywhere." I told Damon, looking down at my arm which Damon was still holding securely, " Do you mind letting go of me now?"

Damon didn't say a word as he let go of my arm . I looked around awkwardly, not knowing what to say to him, and noticed a few people watching us.

"Can we move away from the audience?" I asked so low that only Damon could hear.

He nodded and I turned and headed to the back of the Grill so we could talk in private.

"Okay, you have five minutes." I told him, " I suggest you make them count."

"Audrey, what I did was wrong." Damon started, " It was wrong and stupid and I would take it back if I could."

"But you can't." I reminded him

"I know and I am so sorry." he continued, taking a step towards me, making me take a step back and almost backing into the wall behind me, " I love you, Audrey."

"Don't Damon." I said, " I mean, you can keep saying that you love me but you obviously didn't love me enough to not sleep with Rebekah." I looked between Damon and I and saw that we were only inches apart, " This was a bad idea. I'm gonna go."

I attempted to move around Damon but he stopped me by blocking my path.

"Let me go, Damon." I told him slowly

" I can't." he said solemnly

He took another step towards me and I backed up into the wall with no where to go. Damon took one last step forward, closing the gap between us. I felt my heart pick up speed at his proximity. I looked into his eyes before looking at his lips then quickly returning my gaze to his eyes. I wanted to kiss him so badly and just forget what he did but I had to resist doing that.

" I can't let you go." Damon repeated, " And I can't stand that every time I see you, you look at me like you hate me."

" Maybe I look at you like that because I do hate you." I lied

" You don't hate me, Audrey." Damon said, " If you did your heart wouldn't race like this every time I'm around you." then he brought his hand up to my face and ran his fingers down my cheek, making my heart beat even faster, " Or whenever I touch you."

I didn't say anything or try to deny the truth, I just stood there ,speechless. Damon smirked, taking my silence as the confirmation it was, before putting his hands of my hips and moving his head towards my neck. My breathing hitched when I felt him start kissing my neck softly.

"Damon stop." I told him feebly

"Are you sure you want me to?" He asked between kisses

'_No'_ I thought

"Y-yes." I stuttered unconvincingly

"You don't sound so sure." Damon said against my neck

I didn't reply, mostly because I kept losing my train of thought with Damon kissing me. All I knew was that I was enjoying this much more than I should be, especially since I was mad at him.

'_Screw it.' _I thought

"Damon…" I started, taking his face in my hands and moving so I could look him in the eyes, " I …" I was about to forgive him when I saw Rebekah walk in and all the feelings of anger and betrayal returned, " I will be right back."

I made my way from between him and the wall and ran into the restroom. I walked up the sink and turned the water on and splashed some in my face to cool me off. I grabbed a paper towel and dried of my face before looking at my reflection in the mirror and taking a deep breath.

"What the h*ll am I going to do?" I asked myself, " Should I forgive him or not?"

I stood in there for another minute before taking another deep breath and heading back into the Grill not really sure of what to do. As soon as I walked back in I saw Rebekah shamelessly flirting with Damon and I sighed alerting the two vampires. I turned and headed toward the door but Damon was in front of me before I could make it there.

" Audrey, I swear, it was all Rebekah." Damon said, " I wasn't doing anything."

" It's okay, Damon." I told him, " And you were right. I don't hate you."

"But…" he said solemnly

"But I can't forgive you. Not yet." I said before holding his face in my hands, " I love you, but I just need time to sort things out." I leaned in and kissed him deeply before pulling back and letting go of him. " I'll see you around Damon."

Then I walked out of the Grill and made my way home.

**Author's Note**

**Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter which I wouldn't have done if it wasn't for the persistence and all around awesomeness of Grapejuice101. So thank her and review ( Because after a month I really miss reading those). I'll be back with the next chapter soon.**

**Peace, Love, and Damon Salvatore**

**Audrey;D**


	17. 1912

**Courtney: Glad you liked it. Rebekah and Sage will be some serious competition but we'll see where this goes.**

**Kitty Kat: Love the name and Updated.**

**Grapejuice101: Thank you so much and Updated.**

**Chapter Seventeen- 1912**

The next day Matt and I were running around Mystic Falls together and about ten minutes in Matt was already starting to get winded.

"What are we running ? A marathon?" he asked, out of breath, as we turned a corner

"If you can't keep up…" I started before Matt cut me off

"Audrey, you can't out run your problems." Matt said before slowing down to a walk, "Although it seems like your going to try." That didn't stop me from continuing my run, " I talked to Bonnie ."

I stopped in my tracks and turned around.

"What did she say?" I asked him

"They're at her mom's house." He explained as he walked up to where I had stopped, " Abby's going to complete the transition."

" She's decided to become a vampire?"

"Yeah." he replied, " Caroline's gonna help her through it. Teach her control and stuff."

" Did Bonnie say…" I started, " Is there anything I can do?"

"She knows it's not your fault, Audrey." Matt said, " She's just…upset."

"Damon turned her mom into a vampire to save my life." I reminded him, " It's absolutely my fault."

"You're gonna make me run more, aren't you?" Matt asked as I got ready to run again

Before I could answer him my phone started to ring. I took it out of my pocket and looked at the caller ID. _Liz Forbes. _

"Who is it?" Matt asked as I answered the phone

"Sheriff Forbes." I answered, " Is everything okay?" My eyes widened when she told me about Ric, " He what?"

* * *

><p>I ran the short distance to the City Hall, which contained the jail, and walked in to see Damon coming from the back of the building,<p>

" Were you just with…?" I started to ask but Damon cut me off

"Ric's fine." he answered, " The sheriff wants me to stay out of it."

" But you're not going to." I said, " Are you?"

" Seems like just as good as plan as any." Damon shrugged

" Your friends in jail for murder. You have to do something." I told him

"Well, I could rip out Dr. False accusations throat." Damon suggested, " Or maybe her tongue." I rolled my eyes at him as he continued, " You know, I could chew it up and feed it to the squirrels."

"Stop it, Damon." I snapped

"I guess me staying out of it suddenly sounds like a good idea, doesn't it?" Damon asked me before changing the subject, " I saved your life the other night. You're welcome."

"You know you could show a little compassion about Bonnie."

Damon sighed before he replied, " I know, you're right. Her and her mom must really be hurting right now." the sad thing was, I actually thought he was being serious but the next thing he said made me realize otherwise, " Should I send lasagna?"

" Now you're just being mean." I said before turning and heading off to find Liz.

" I'm mean, you hate me. The world is back on it's axis." Damon said making me stop

"You know if you keep pushing people away, you're gonna end up alone." I said before walking off to find Liz.

* * *

><p>After I had pleaded with Sheriff Forbes to let Ric go for about a half an hour to no avail I decided to go and find evidence that cleared him. My first stop was to talk to crazy Dr. Fell. I waited by my car until I saw her walk out of her can and started walking with her towards the hospital.<p>

" I'm doing surgery." she told me sharply, " Whatever case you're gonna make against Alaric, make it quick."

" I don't have to make a case, he didn't do anything." I told her confidently

" How do you know?" Meredith snapped, " Sure he lives with you, takes care of you, but do you really know anything about him?"

" I know enough."

" Let me tell you what I know." she said, stopping where she was, " He was arrested for fighting four times before the age of twenty-one. When he was at Duke, his future wife Isobel filed a restraining order against him, twice. Although, then she married him so maybe that says more about her."

"Okay, you're making all of this up." I insisted

" Am I? How do you know?" she asked me, " You took pity on a borderline alcoholic vampire hunter and you never thought to look any deeper."

" How could you do this to him?" I asked Meredith in disbelief, " He didn't kill anyone and you know it."

" You're dating a vampire, Audrey." Meredith said, " It shouldn't come as a shock that your guardian is a murder."

Then she turned around and headed into the hospital.

* * *

><p>I went home and changed before walking into Elena's room to tell her about Ric. When I went in a saw her writing in her diary.<p>

" Have you heard about Ric?" I asked her as I took a seat on her bed

"No, what happened to him?" She asked, putting her diary down

"Dr. Fell got him arrested for the murders of Bill Forbes and that medical examiner guy." I told her bluntly

"What!" she exclaimed, " Ric would never do that."

" Well, we know that but there is to much evidence against Ric and Liz won't let him go until they find some sound evidence that he didn't do it."

" What are we waiting for then?" Elena asked, jumping out of her bed, " Let's go and clear Ric's name."

" Okay, but where gonna need more help." I told her, " And we're gong to have to break into Meredith's house to get what we need."

"Who are we gonna get to help us out?" Elena asked me

"Matt. Text him and tell him to get over here ASAP." I told her, getting off of her bed and heading towards the door, " I'll be downstairs when your done."

"Okay." she replied before grabbing her phone and texting Matt

As I walked out of Elena's room I started having this vision.

_I saw Damon and Stefan walking into a tent wearing period clothing like everyone else, later than 1864 but early than the twenties from what I could tell. The tent was filled mainly with a big boxing ring where a light brown haired man was fighting a red headed woman, who was easily beating him. She quickly backed him into the corner of the ring before punching him one more time, making him fall to the ground, efficiently knocking him out. The crowed cheered for her victory._

"_Whose next?" the woman asked everyone in the crowd, " One hundred dollars to any man that can beat me." she looked eyes with Damon and they both smiled at each other before she started walking around the ring again. As she walked away Stefan came up next to Damon._

"_I could teach you how to survive without human blood you know." Stefan told him_

" _You do not get to lecture me on how to live my life." Damon said curtly, " Not any more."_

_Then he walked away from Stefan and got a few feet before being stopped by the red headed woman._

"_What's your name?" she asked him_

" _Not interested." Damon responded before trying to get away, only to be stopped by the woman_

" _Well mister not interested, you seem to me like a gambling man." she said, looking him over_

" _I'm afraid you have me all wrong." Damon told her_

_She grabbed the one hundred dollar bill from her shirt and handed it over to Damon._

"_Well, that's to bad." she said before walking away_

" Audrey?" Elena asked, shaking me out of my vision, " Audrey, are you okay?"

"Yeah." I said noticing that I was on the floor, " How did I end up down here?"

"You were walking out of my room as I texted Matt and you just collapsed." she informed me, " Did you have a vision?"

"Yes." I said as I stood up, " But it's nothing important. Let's focus on Ric for right now."

"Okay, I texted Matt." She told me as we walked down stairs, " He should be here soon."

"Now we wait." I told her

* * *

><p>After Matt came the three of us headed over to Meredith's apartment. Matt quickly picked the lock and we walked in without any problems.<p>

" Wow, nice job." Elena congratulated Matt on his lock picking ability

"Yeah." I agreed, " Who knew you had it in you, Matty?"

"I'll add breaking and entering to the list of life favors you two owe me." he said as we looked around

"Look, I don't know how much longer Meredith is going to be in surgery so lets see what we can find." I told them

" Don't you think the police already combed through this place?" Matt asked me

" Yeah." Elena agreed, " She already handed over everything she had."

"Well, I'm looking for the evidence she didn't hand over." I told them as I looked through Meredith's desk

"And you are sure she's the one we should be investigating?" Matt asked, looking at a folder from her book shelf

" I know him Matt. He's innocent." I replied, " And I know Meredith's a Fell. A founding family." I looked over at Meredith's closet, " Which means…" I walked over to the closet and opened it. I searched through it before finding a secret compartment at the back, " Skeletons in the closet."

" Just like a true founder." Elena added as her and Matt joined me in the closet

Matt went towards the compartment door and opened it, revealing a box which he grabbed and put it on the floor so we could all look through it. Inside were files belonging to the murder victims.

" Brian Walter." I read the name on the file before flipping to the next one, " Bill Forbes."

Matt pulled one of the files and read the name.

"Alaric Saltzman."

~line break~

We started to look through the file when I had a second vision

_Damon was feeding off of a girl with the nameless red head in the background. When he had drained the girl he dropped her and pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket._

"_How sad." the red head said as she observed Damon, " You're doing it all wrong. Bad vampire."_

"_I was hungry and now I am not hungry." Damon said before wiping the blood off his face, " My quality of form is simply subjective."_

" _A woman is not just for food." the woman scolded Damon, " She is for pleasure."_

" _I do not need a woman for pleasure, I am already spoken for." Damon said before walking away_

_The mysterious woman grabbed his arm before he could leave._

"_We are all spoken for…in some way. But what is being a vampire if not relishing in the pleasure of it?" she asked before leading him inside._

_As they walked back in two men were fighting in the ring while some cheered at the action and others flinched._

"_Look at the women. They're beautiful aren't they?" she told Damon as they stood in front of the ring, he immediately looked at the, for that time period anyway, underdressed women up close to the ring, cheering at every punch that was thrown, " Not them. They're to hungry for attention. You want the one's that are all buttoned up. Watch them. They can't tare their eyes away." Damon moved his eyes to a woman that flinched whenever someone got hurt in the fight, " Those are the one's that secretly crave seduction. They'll put up a good fight, but the game is in winning them over. Making them beg for it."_

"_What if they don't?" Damon asked her_

" _You're a vampire." she reminded him, " You take it."_

_Damon smirked before his eyes landed on a woman standing all by herself and, like the woman before her, flinched at every move._

"_Her." the red head purred, pushing Damon towards her_

_Damon looked at the red head one more time before moving towards the lonely girl._

I opened my eyes and was back in Meredith's apartment but now I was in Matt's arms.

" Care to explain?" I asked as I sat up

" You passed out and I caught you before you hit the ground." Matt explained

" Reasonable explanation."

"What do you keep seeing?" Elena asked me, seeming concerned

"It's nothing Elena." I dismissed, not really sure myself what my visions were telling me, "We sort of have more pressing issues to tend to at the moment, like getting out of this house and clearing Ric's name."

"Okay…" Elena said reluctantly as we all turned back to the box of files

"She's got everything on him, medical records, court documents." I said as I looking through Ric's file

"Hey, what's this?" Matt asked, pulling an old journal out of the box

I grabbed it from him and opened it, starting to read the first page.

"It's an old Gilbert journal." I replied

" Why is one of your old family journals doing in her closet?" Matt asked me

"I don't know."

"Audrey, didn't you say the medical examiners death was between one and three a.m.?" Elena asked me

"Yeah." I answered, continuing to flip through the journal pages, " Why?"

" Because the county coroners office says that's wrong." she said handing me a letter but before I could read it I heard foots steps coming towards the door.

I looked at Matt and Elena and we quickly picked up all the files and put them back in the box before hiding it and ourselves in the small closet and turning off the light. We heard the front door open and Meredith walk through the house before dropping something down.

"I think…" Matt started before I put my finger on his lips, silencing him

About a minute later we heard Meredith walk out of the house and slam the door. We all let out a sigh of relief before opening the door and standing face to face with Meredith.

* * *

><p>"What were you thinking?" Sheriff Forbes asked as Matt, Elena, and I sat in her office<p>

" I know that we had no right." Elena started

"No right!" Liz exclaimed, " You broke the law."

"But we found something that clears Alaric." I told her, " It gives him an alibi for the Brian Walters murder."

" You mean this?" Liz asked, holding up a letter

" What is that?" Elena asked her

" A letter from the county coroners office correcting the error in the time of death of Brian Walters." Liz explained, " Meredith Fell received it today. She brought it to me a few hours ago full of apologizes for accusing an innocent man."

"Why would she have a copy hidden in her closet?" Matt asked the sheriff

" I can't ask those questions, Matt, because of the very fact that you broke into her house to find it." She snapped, " Do you know how much I am protecting you three?"

"I'm sorry." I apologized

"Just get out of my office and go home." Liz said calmly as she took a seat, "Please. Alaric will be released as soon as the letter is authenticated. Go."

With that the three of us got up and headed out of Liz's office.

* * *

><p>Matt and I walked out of the police station before Elena, she had decided that she needed a drink as we walked out and stopped at one of the vending machines to grab a bottle of water. When the two of us were walking around the corner we saw Stefan and Damon standing over a girl whose neck had blood running down it.<p>

"What are you doing?" I asked them

Stefan turned around and he had blood covering his mouth and slowly dripping down his chin.

I sighed in disappointment before I heard Elena coming to join us, " Elena, wait a minute." I tried to stop her but it was to late

"Stefan?" she asked

Stefan attempted to wipe the blood off of his face but it didn't work very well and left alot of blood on his face.

"Elena…" he whispered

" What are you two doing?" I asked the two brothers

"Relax, Audrey." Damon started, " It's just a little experiment. There's no need to make this more dramatic than it needs to be."

"Elena, Audrey, let's just go." Matt suggested

I nodded but Elena just stared at Stefan.

"Come on Elena." I said as I grabbed her arm and Matt, Elena, and I walked home.

* * *

><p>When we got back to our house Elena and I sat at the dinning table and Matt brought us some coffee and took a seat.<p>

"Just say it." I told him, seeing the look on his face

" I just don't get it." Matt told us, " The thing you to have with them."

"We know it doesn't make sense." Elena laughed without humor, " But at the beginning, after my parents died, there was something about being with Stefan that just felt…safe."

" Safe?" Matt questioned Elena, " Elena, he's a vampire."

" I know believe me, just saying it out loud…makes me sound crazy." Elena agreed with him, " But it's like I knew he would never stopped loving me. Like he would never…"

"What?" Matt asked her

" Die." she finished, " Like he would never die."

" Like your parents did." Matt said and Elena nodded, then Matt turned towards me, " And Damon?"

" Damon just sort of…snuck up on me." I told him, " He got under my skin and no matter what I do I just, I can't shake him."

" Once you fall in love with someone, I don't know if you can ever shake them." Matt told said, looking at me sincerely

I looked away and we all just sat there for awhile before Elena broke the silence.

" I'm sorry." she apologized, " Is this weird? Taking about them with you?"

"No." Matt laughed, " Not really. I got you guys something." he said before grabbing the old Gilbert journal from his jacket and handing it to me.

" The journal?" Elena asked him

"It's your families, you should have it." Matt said, " Meredith and that idiot deputy were to busy questioning you and Audrey to give a d*mn about me. Sometimes it pays to be the only normal one in a town filled with vampires. Practically invisible."

"Like a ninja." I told Matt with a laugh

"Like a ninja." Matt repeated with a smile

Then the front door opened and Ric walked in. Elena and I jumped up from our seats and ran over to him.

"Are you okay?" Elena asked him

" Yeah, I'm alright." he assured us

Elena and I looked at him for a moment before wrapping are arms around him.

* * *

><p>After Elena, Ric, and I had stopped our epic hugging, Matt went home and we all went our separate ways. Elena and Ric went to their rooms to go to sleep and I stayed down stairs and started reading the newly discovered Gilbert journal. A few pages into it I was struck with yet another vision.<p>

_Stefan and Damon were standing in the boxing tent again looking at all the people around them._

" _Go ahead, Stefan." Damon whispered in Stefan's ear, " Pick one."_

"_They're people, Damon." Stefan shot back_

" _Yes they are people, Stefan." Damon said, " People with blood running through there veins ready to be opened up and sucked dry. You've just forgotten how good it feels."_

_Stefan focused on the man that had been taken down in the ring and saw how the blood was running from the cuts on his face._

"_Not him, Stefan." Damon told his brother, " Not him." Then Damon looked at one of the women that flinched whenever a someone was hit, " Her. She's the one."_

" _I don't do that anymore." Stefan bit out_

" _But you can, Stefan." Damon said, " Let the past be the past. Have a drink with me brother."_

_Then everything shifted and Stefan was feeding off of the woman on the side of the tent with Damon a few feet behind him._

" _I knew you still had it in you." Damon said, when Stefan came up from the woman's neck._

_Stefan seemed not to hear Damon and went back to draining the woman with more force than was needed. Damon quickly noticed this and went to stop his brother._

" _Don't be greedy." Damon said, putting a hand on Stefan's shoulder_

_Stefan shook off Damon's hand but didn't stop feeding from the woman._

"_Stefan." Damon tried to stop him, " Stefan."_

_After a few more seconds the woman's head fell the ground while her body was still in Stefan's arms. Stefan soon realized what he had done and bent down next to the woman._

" _Oh my God." Stefan whispered, " I'm sorry, I'm sorry."_

" _Stefan stop." Damon said as Stefan tried to reattach the woman's head to the rest of her body_

"_I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry." Stefan kept repeating as he tried to bring the woman back to life._

"_Stefan stop." Damon said after he had seen enough_

"_What did you do to me?" Stefan yelled at him, " What did you do to me?"_

"_You just need to learn." Damon told him, " I can help you."_

"_No." Stefan said, before turning away from the corpse and Damon before running into the forest that surrounded the tent._

"Audrey." I heard someone say as I was being shook, " Audrey, wake up."

I opened my eyes and saw Ric standing next to the couch I was laying on.

" You can't sleep on this couch all night." Ric continued, " Trust me, it's murder on your back."

" I wasn't sleeping." I said groggily as I sat up, "I was merely resting my eyes so I could read this journal."

" Sure." Ric said, rolling his eyes, before turning serious, " Listen, Audrey, the sheriff told me what you did today and while I appreciate it I don't want you, or Elena, to get in trouble for me."

" If not for you, then who?" I asked him

" Well, still, I'm the one that is supposed to look after you, even if I suck at it." he told me

"Okay, how about we just agree to take care of each other then?"

"Deal." Ric replied with a smile, " What are you reading there?"

I looked at the Journal that was sitting on my lap, opened. I picked it up and looked through some of the pages as I talked to him.

" Old family journal." I answered him

" Any juicy family secrets?" Ric asked teasingly

" I don't know." I said, "At first I thought it was Jonathon Gilbert's journal but it ended up being his granddaughters. Who, apparently, ended up going as crazy as he did." The I proceeded to get up off of the couch, " So great genes , huh?"

"At least you have something to look forward to." Ric told me jokingly

"Good night, Ric." I smiled as I headed upstairs

* * *

><p>I was up in my room a little while later reading Samantha Gilberts journal when I started to sense how crazy she really had gotten. I flipped through the pages until I found one that was actually readable.<p>

'_I don't feel like myself' _she wrote, I flipped to another passage '_ I'm losing time."_

As read more the pieces finally started to fall into place. I stopped just outside of the kitchen When I heard Meredith talking to Ric.

" I would know if I was killing people." Alaric shouted

" Would you?' Meredith countered, " You don't have black outs, instances of lost time?"

"You insane." Ric told her

"No." Meredith told him, " But I think you might be. You wear a ring that lets you cheat death. How many times can you die before it changes you?" I heard them both take seats before Meredith continued, " I think you're sick. Let me help you. This has happened before, almost a hundred years ago."

I took this time to walk in and both of them turned to look at me.

"Audrey." Ric said

" Ric, I think she's right." I said sadly, holding up the century old journal.

_**Author's Note**_

_**Well, I have to say that this episode was probably one of my favorites of the season although it should of had more Delena scenes but I digress. Review, Review, Review.**_

_**Audrey;D**_


	18. Break On Through

_**I know I say it a lot but here it is again. Thank you to grapejuice101 for your help with this story.**_

**_Katie- I haven't thought about that but you never know..._**

**Chapter Eighteen-Break On Through**

The next day I filled in Aurora and Elena in on what was happening with Ric before we all went to the hospital so Dr. Fell could give Ric a MRI to see if what was causing his black outs and potential murdering spells was in his head. On our way over Aurora called Jace and told him to meet us there.

" So Ric has been the one murdering all of these council members?" Jace asked me as he, Aurora, and I walked to the room Meredith has pointed out for us

"That's what it seems like." I replied, " The ring that saves him from death by the supernatural seems to be causing him to go insane and kill these people."

"So what are we going to do about it?" Aurora queried

"I have no idea." I told her honestly, " Well just have to wait and see if there is anything we can do."

The three of us walked into the room and were greeted by a waiting Elena. We looked through the glass wall that separated the three of us from the MRI machine and we saw one of the nurses and Meredith bring Ric in the room and set him us in the machine. After Meredith had made sure everything was ready she came into are room and turned the machine on and the nurse slid Ric into it.

"So what are you looking for exactly?" Elena asked Meredith

"I don't know." Meredith told her, " A tumor ,vascular anomalies, anything physical that might explain his behavior. If it's medical I can treat it."

" And if it's not?" I asked her

" Well, then will deal with that too." Meredith said

" When did you first suspect him?" Aurora questioned from her spot in the back of the room with Jace " That it was Alaric killing all of those people?"

" It was after he told me about his ring." Meredith began, " I remembered a story my grandmother had told me about Samantha Gilbert and her secret journal." she turned away from the glass wall and looked at Aurora, " I don't know if you know this but we Fells are notorious busy bodies."

" Then why did you protect him?" Jace added

" Because I'm a doctor , I don't like to see someone hurt over something they have no control over." she told us, " And because when he and I first met I felt…I don't know, I just kind of wanted to help him."

I smiled when I realized that she actually cared for Ric and wanted to make sure he was okay, even through she had shot him and gotten him arrested less than twenty-four hours ago. A few moments later we heard Ric freaking out in the MRI scanner and turned towards the glass to look at him.

" Everything alright in there?" Meredith asked him over the intercom

"Yeah, yeah, everything's okay." Alaric responded after he had calmed down

* * *

><p>After Ric was done he , Aurora, Jace and I moved to Ric's hospital room and waited for Elena to come back with the results.<p>

" Meredith says that everything is normal." Elena said as she entered the room

" Yeah, well, everything is fine because there is nothing wrong with me." Ric snapped as he picked up his keys and his wallet and putting them in her pockets, " I didn't kill Brian Walters, I didn't kill Bill Forbes, and I sure as h*ll didn't shove a hunting knife into my stomach." Alaric looked down an his ring and picked it up before looking back at Elena and I, " Or I did and I've gone insane, just like your ancestor that wore this ring."

" Look, I'm gonna call Bonnie." I told Ric, " The rings were made by a Bennett witch so maybe a witch can reverse it."

Ric looked at his ring one more time before handing to me.

"Take it." he said, " I don't want it anymore."

" Ugh." Aurora exclaimed, confusing the rest of us in the room" Great."

" What?" I asked, looking over at her

She gestured toward the door and I looked over just in time to see Damon walk into the room.

" It's great to see you too, Blondie." Damon said sarcastically before turning to Ric, " You ready to get out of this house of horrors? Oh, you look terrible."

" Yeah, let me check out of here." Ric said before walking out of the room

Elena and Aurora glared at Damon before they both walked out of the room with Jace. Damon and I just stood there, looking at each other and not knowing what to say. After a while I decided to break the silence.

" Can I ask you something?"

" Of course you can." Damon replied

" Okay, this might sound weird but, I have been having these visions lately about you, Stefan, and this red headed, boxing, vampire chick from the early nineteen hundreds maybe, and I was wondering if you knew who this girl was?"

A smirk quickly made its way onto Damon's lips, " Sage." he told me, " the vampire that made me who I am today."

" The woman that made Damon Salvatore, Damon Salvatore." I said, " This is someone that I have to meet."

" Good luck with that." Damon laughed, " I haven't seen her in about a hundred years."

" Well, something tells me that see might be back in town." I retorted, " My visions aren't just random. When I have them, they are trying to tell me something."

"Or they are random and are telling you nothing." Damon countered

" Well, last time someone told me my visions didn't mean anything I found out that I was right and that Ric had been shot and arrested."

Damon thought about this for a minute before responding.

" Just because you haven't been wrong before doesn't mean your visions are fool proof."

" I guess we'll see." I said

" I guess we will." Damon agreed before we went to meet up with the others

* * *

><p>When we had found the others Ric told us he was leaving with Meredith, Aurora and Jace had already left to get the house ready for his return, and Elena was about to leave so Damon and I started to talk to her as she headed to her car.<p>

"Don't worry about him, take him out for chicken soup, get him a martini, and make sure he doesn't kill anybody." Damon told us

" That does sound like Ric's perfect treatment." I said with a smile

" What is wrong with you?" Elena suddenly snapped

"Excuse me?" I asked her

" How could you just go out feeding with Stefan like some vampire pub crawl?" Elena continued, turning to look at Damon as we reached her car

"Oh right, I thought we were talking about Alaric, but of course we're talking about Stefan." Damon said, rolling his eyes

" You stood there and let him feed on an innocent girl." Elena shouted

" I didn't let him do anything." Damon corrected, " If you want to get nit-picky about it, I made him."

" Why would you do that?" Elena asked him

" Because they're vampire's, Elena." I reminded her, earning a looks from both her and Damon, " They need human blood to survive."

"Exactly." Damon agreed, looking back at Elena, " We're predators, not puppies."

" You agree with this?" Elena asked me

" I'm not saying they should drain the entire city dry, Elena." I told her, " But I'm not going to freak out at them for doing what they need to survive."

" Well, Stefan found a way around it before."

"Stefan has built himself a delusional wagon which he has repeatedly fallen off of. What he needs to learn is control." Damon explained

"He was able to manage when he was drinking my blood." Elena informed us , "Small amounts every single day."

"Ah, yes, back when you two were in love and it was all rainbows and unicorns." Damon said sarcastically and I couldn't help but laugh

"I'm just saying, maybe you're not the right person to be teaching Stefan about self-control." Elena said, glaring at the both of us before getting in her car and driving off.

* * *

><p>After Elena had left Damon had convinced me to go the Wickery Bridge restoration fundraiser with him, Meredith, and Ric, which he must have also convinced. I drove to Wickery Bridge and got out to join the others as they were walking toward the construction on the bridge.<p>

" Tell me why we're here again?" Ric asked Damon

"Ric, the world can't stop just because you're an accidental psycho killer." Damon said

" Do you have any tact whatsoever?" Meredith asked him in shock of what he had just said

" Meredith, if there is one this I have learned in the last two years of living in Mystic Falls, it is that Damon Salvatore has no tact." I told her with a smile which disappeared as Carol Lock wood approached

" Alaric, I'm glad you're here. Did you bring the sign?" At this Alaric seemed completely confused so Carol continued, "The restored Wickery Bridge sign. The history department promised me you'd have it today."

" I- I don't have the sign actually it slipped…. it slipped my mind. I've been….. Busy." Ric stuttered, frightened by the condescending woman that would do anything to make this perfect

"Well, it's not an emergency., putting a fake smile on her face" Carol said We'll just um- unveil it when the bridge is complete." And with that Carol turned and headed back to the construction workers and volunteers

" Get me out of here." Alaric said to Meredith

" My pleasure." Meredith agreed

I was about to go with them when I spotted Sage standing on the other side of Wickery Bridge smiling towards Damon.

" I just love being right." I told Damon

" What are you talking about?" Damon asked me unaware of Sage standing in the distance

I jerked my head toward Sage and Damon finally looked over at her and smiled.

" Who is that?" Alaric asked us

" Blast from the past." Damon told him before we both walked off

* * *

><p>" Damon Salvatore, my favorite student." Sage purred as we arrived<p>

"Sage, my hottest teacher." Damon said

" And who is this?" Sage asked, turning toward me

" Audrey." I told her

" Nice to met you, Audrey." Sage said

" So Sage, what are you doing here?" Damon asked Sage

" Just passing through." she said dismissively

" Oh, come on, nobody just passes through Mystic Falls." Damon told her

" Look what the cat dragged in." Rebekah sneered as she walked up to the three of us.

"Easy there, Rebekah." Damon warned her, "You know she use to beat men for sport."

" She always was quite common." Rebekah insulted

" Rebekah. What a happy surprise." Sage said sarcastically

" What are you doing here Sage?" Rebekah asked trying to find the answer to the question everyone was asking

"Well, I heard Finn was finally freed from that casket your rageaholic brother Klaus carted him around in." Sage explained

"Finn? You just missed him." Rebekah told her, "He left town and didn't tell a soul where he was going."

" He probably went looking for me." Sage said, getting annoyed with Rebekah

" Or quite possible he forgot all about you." Rebekah suggested

" I doubt that."

" No?" Rebekah asked her, "Cause he didn't seem to mention you. Sorry you came all this way for nothing. Have a nice life."

With that Rebekah turned and walked away.

" God, I hat that elitist b*tch." Sage commented as she walked away

"You and me both." I agreed with her

* * *

><p>After Rebekah had left Damon, Sage, and I took a walk through the woods to talk.<p>

" Finn, really?" Damon asked her skeptically

" He's my one true love. He turned me so we could be together forever." Sage told him, " Then Klaus daggered him and locked him away and I've been waiting ever since. Please don't tell me that you and Rebekah are friends."

" Not unless you count hate sex." Damon replied

"Good, cause her and Klaus always treated me like some peasant whore." Sage said

" She probably only called you that because she's a slut herself." I quipped as we continued walking

" Ah, she's just lurking around because she wants something from me." Damon said, ignoring the both of us, " Can't figure out what it is though."

When he said this I remembered a dream I had had of Rebekah and Klaus talking about the White Oak tree after Rebekah had spent the day torturing me in the underground cave.

"_Look at the images on the wall behind Audrey." she ordered him, " The Natives told the story of our family history, look at the images on the far wall."_

" _What is it?" Klaus asked her_

" _A Native worshiping at the Great White Oak tree." she explained_

" _And? We burned that tree to the ground."_

"_Look at the markings that precede it." she said, "That's the Native calendar."_

" _That can't be right." Klaus said, looking at the calendar_

" _A White Oak Tree." Rebekah said, " Three hundred years after we fled to the Old World. There must have been a sapling, a new tree to replace the old. That tree could kill us. It's not over, Nik." _

" What are you smiling at?" Damon asked me seeing the smirk on my face from this new information

" I know what Rebekah wants." I stated

" Well…" Damon began

" There's another White Oak tree." I explained, " Rebekah is trying to find out where it is."

" Why is she coming to me then?" Damon asked

" I only get what I get, Damon." I said with a shrug

" Why don't you get inside her head and figure out?" Sage asked Damon

" Cause it's impossible." Damon told her, " She's too strong."

" I bet I could get in there." Sage smirked, looking over at Rebekah by the refreshment stand

" Sage, she's and original." Damon continued, " It's not gonna happen."

"Have you forgotten everything I taught you?" Sage asked him, " Rebekah may be an Original, but she's a girl. You find her weakness and exploit it and I'll walk right in. That is if you want my help."

"We do." I assured her and Damon nodded

" Damon, you have to convince Rebekah to come to a party with you, Audrey and I." Sage instructed him

" How am I supposed to that?"

" Use your charm." I said, " You got her before, I'm sure you can do it again."

" Audrey…" Damon started

" Just go, Damon." I cut him off, sensing another apology I really didn't want to hear right now, " we need to figure out what she knows as soon as possible."

Damon looked at me for another moment before turning and heading off to Rebekah.

" So what's the story with you and Damon?" Sage asked when Damon started talking to Rebekah

" What are you talking about?" I asked, turning to face her

"Oh, come on." Sage exclaimed, " There is so obviously something going on between you two. So what is it?"

" We used to date." I told her, " Before he cheated on me with Rebekah."

" Wow, Damon Salvatore in a relationship, that's certainly not something I thought I would live to see." Sage smirked

" Well, it didn't last very long." I sighed as Damon walked back towards us after his conversation with Rebekah.

" She turned us down." Damon said as he walked up to us

" Oh, she'll come." Sage said confidently, " We better go set up."

* * *

><p>On my ride over to the Boarding house I took the time to call Bonnie but she refused to answer any of my calls. After two calls I gave up and called Caroline.<p>

" Hey, what's going on?" Care answered after the second ring

" Bonnie's not returning any of my calls." I replied

"Sorry, she's still mad and seriously Abby's transition has been a little rough, so she's got a lot on her mind." Care explained

"I know and I get it but, something really terrible has happened to Ric." I told her," And I really need her help."

* * *

><p>Later that night Sage was sitting on the piano bench next to a pianist she had picked up earlier in the day, Damon was uncorking some bottles of wine he had found, and I was sitting on the couch near the fire place.<p>

" Alright Miss Master Seductress, where's our victim?" Damon asked Sage impatiently

"Patience." Sage chided him, "Between her craving for affection and her pathological fear of being left alone, our little get together is too tempting to resist."

Then Sage grabbed the pianists' arm and bit into his arm.

" Finn's gone, you know." Damon told her after a few moments

Sage pilled away from the mans wrist and wiped her mouth before saying, " I chose to believe otherwise."

" He strung you along for 900 years, didn't bother to call, he's gone." Damon said

" You know, the Damon I knew was holding out for someone too." Sage recalled

" Yes, he was." Damon agreed, pouring four glasses of wine before handing one to me and then one to Sage, "Hope's a b*tch, Sage. Get out while you can."

After he said that the doorbell rang, signaling Rebekah's arrival.

" The sweet chime of desperation." I smirked before Rebekah walked into the room with a bottle of wine

"I stole it from Nik who stole it from a Queen. Not sure which one." she told us before looking around and noticing the dismal atmosphere, "Well this is depressing. What happened to the party?"

Sage quickly got up to Rebekah and grabbed the bottle she was holding.

" It just arrived." Sage said, uncorking the bottle

* * *

><p>After we had all had enough to drink Damon and Sage started dancing and when I started t get bored I got up and cut in. Sage left the room, without Rebekah knowing since her eyes were stuck on Damon and I. As we continued to dance, Rebekah lost interest and took a seat next to the pianist and sinking her teeth into his neck. I looked up at Damon and gestured for him to go over to her before walking over to the couch and laying down.<p>

" How about a duet?" Damon asked standing on the other side of the pianist

Rebekah looked up at him for a second and, without answering him, went back to draining the pianist. Damon took this as an invitation and grabbed the unnamed piano players' arm and began to drink. A little while later they pulled away from the newly dead pianist and wiped the blood from their lips. Damon grabbed her face in his hands and they both stood up, the space between their lips diminished quickly and right before they were gonna kiss Sage came from the other room and snapped Rebekah's neck. I got off of the couch and made my way over to Sage, Damon, and Rebekah.

" Now what do we do?" I asked

" Now I get inside her head." Sage replied, bending down and brushing Rebekah's hair from her face. Shock crossed her face after a minute, " The White Oak tree was somewhere here in Mystic Falls and she was asking around for milling ledgers for the early nineteen hundreds and was pointed towards you."

"Our family made one of its many fortunes selling lumber." Damon said, walking over to a shelf of books near the fire place, " That tree was on our land and milled by our yard. The ledgers will tell me where it was shipped. Business archives should be around here somewhere."

"You should get Rebekah out of here." I suggested to Sage

Sage nodded before picking up Rebekah's unmoving form and heading out of the room. I walked over to where Damon was and saw a row of books numbered from 1900 to 1930. For some reason I felt a pull towards the book labeled with 1912, I reached out and grabbed the book before opening it and beginning to read. It didn't take long before finding what I was looking for.

" You've got to be kidding me." I groaned looking at the book

"What is it?" Damon asked, turning towards me

" In 1912 a white oak tree was chopped down and delivered to the construction of Wickery Bridge."

* * *

><p>Damon crouched in front of the fire, burning the milling ledgers, and I was pacing across the room as we waited for Sage to get back. Suddenly my phone began to ring. I checked the caller ID and saw that it was Caroline.<p>

" What's up, Caroline?" I answered

"Abby thinks Bonnie can reverse the damage of the spell." Care started, " I guess this same thing happens to witches who get obsessed with dark magic. They lose control and start acting out their darkest impulses."

" Thank you so much." I thanked her

"I'm gonna hang back here with Abby, but Bonnie's leaving now, so…." Caroline trailed off, " Hold on."

"I need a personal effect of Alaric's, something he wore before he started wearing the ring." I heard Bonnie say, which shocked me

"Okay, I…I'll get Elena on it." I told her, " Bonnie, I am so sorry for everything, thank you for doing this."

" Be ready to do the spell as soon as I get there. We have to work fast. I'll see you soon." Bonnie said before hanging up as fast as possible

I took the phone away from my ear and texted Elena the new info and what she needed to get. Then I put my phone away and continued my pacing.

"You're gonna wear a path in my rug." Damon commented as he stepped away from the fire and towards me

"Well, your rich." I retorted, " You can afford another rug."

" Audrey, stop." Damon said, grabbing me by my shoulders and looking me in the eyes, " What's wrong?"

I laughed once without humor, " What isn't wrong, Damon?" I asked him , " Alaric is a psycho killer, the originals are still around, and…"

" What?"

" And I still love you." I whispered, " Even after what you did, I still love you."

" Why is that a problem?" he asked with a smirk

" I don't want to get hurt again." I told him

" I wouldn't hurt you." Damon argued

"Really?" I asked him, " How do I know that the next time I'm mad at you you're not gonna jump in bed with Rebekah again?"

" Because I don't want her." he said, resting one of his hands on my cheek, " I want you."

I didn't respond and Damon closed the space between our lips hesitantly, searching my face for any signs of resistance but finding none. When our lips met the kiss started out slow but soon became passionate and I moved my hands into Damon's hair to pull him closer to me. I felt Damon move the hand that wasn't cradling my face to my hips. We started moving and soon fell on the couch, Damon hovering over me, and the kiss continued to get more heated. Without breaking the kiss I unbuttoned Damon's shirt and he finished by taking it off and throwing it to the ground. I started to unbutton my shirt when I heard someone walk into the room.

" Sorry to interrupt the fun." Sage said, her voice full of amusement

Damon and I pulled away from each other, Damon smirking, and me blushing. I sat up and quickly buttoned my shirt but Damon just sat there shirtless, which I didn't mind at all.

" So, did you find what you were looking for?" Sage asked us

" Yep." Damon replied immediately, "1912, the Salvatore milling company chopped down a forest, its most valuable wood came an old white oak tree that was used to make the Wickery Bridge. Those aren't public records, so Rebekah's gonna chase her tail for a long time."

"So all the wood stripped from the underside of that bridge is basically a weapon that could kill an Original?" she questioned

"Basically." I replied

"You see how this could be a problem for me, right?" Sage asked

"Why?" Damon asked, getting up and starting to walk over to her, "Because of your true love Finn? Let me tell you something, I met the guy, you're not gonna miss him."

Before Damon could get to Sage she rushed over to me and picked me up by the throat, making it impossible to breathe.

" Take one more step and I'll rip her head off." Sage warned Damon

"Alright, let's make a deal." Damon said nervously, "You let me kill Rebekah, I consider Finn untouchable, you guys walk into the sunset together."

" Is that a promise?" Sage asked as I started to lose consciousness

" Yes." Damon said, looking at me, " It's a promise."

At this Sage released me and I fell to the ground gasping for air. Damon ran over to me, picked me up, and ran into the living room.

" Are you okay?" he asked me, his voice full of concern

" I'm fine." I replied after I had caught my breath

Damon got up and filled a glass with bourbon before handing it over to me. I downed the entire drink before standing.

"Thanks." I said, " We gotta get that white oak before they tear down the bridge."

Damon nodded and we started toward the library to get Sage, even though I didn't want to after she had almost choked me to death but we were desperate.

" Sage, lets go, we have Originals to kill." Damon said as we entered the room

We looked around but Sage was nowhere to be found."

" Sage?"

* * *

><p>When we realized that Sage had left we jumped in Damon's car and sped to Wickery Bridge. We pulled up and saw Rebekah burning the remainder of the white oak. Damon stopped the car and we both jumped out, already to late.<p>

"Your grand plans always seem to get ruined, don't they? Sorry to disappoint you. Again." Rebekah said before walking away

We turned back towards the car and saw Sage leaning against it.

" You set us up." I accused

"No. I'm just looking out for myself." she said

"I told you I'd save your creepy boyfriend!" Damon yelled as we walked up to her

"And you lied to me, Damon!" she countered, "The Originals are linked, if one dies they all die. If I can get inside her head, don't you think I'd be able to get inside yours?"

"I should end you." Damon said, rushing over to her and grabbing her by the throat

"I'm 900 years old, Damon. You're not capable of ending me." Sage said before throwing Damon off of her and to the ground, "Do you really think that I would risk Finn's life for one of your petty revenge fantasies?"

"Let me tell you something, your long lost love has a suicide wish" Damon said as he picked himself off the ground, "Cause when mama witch linked them together in a spell he's the one that volunteered to die."

"He wouldn't do that." Sage told him

"He didn't want to live. Not for you. Not for anyone." I said

" He doesn't love you, Sage." Damon added, " Now, when I do find another way to kill those Originals, I'll start with Finn."

Sage stared at us for a few moments before running off.

* * *

><p>Damon and I were driving back to the boarding house after we had left Wickery Bridge when I started having a vision.<p>

_Ric and Meredith were alone at the house and Meredith was looking through the cabinets for something_.

" _Looking for something?" Ric asked her, although something seemed off about him_

" _I don't know where anything is in this house." Meredith laughed, finding two coffee mugs and pouring coffee into them, "I'm sorry, I can't remember, do you take cream?"_

"_No cream." Ric said_

" _I was gonna make sandwiches." Meredith told Ric, " I'm starving."_

" _Can I ask you a question?" Ric queried_

"_No mustard." Meredith shook her head, " I hate mustard."_

" _Do you ever feel remorse?" Ric asked her abruptly _

_Meredith turned and gave him a questionable look, " I'm sorry?"_

"_Well," Ric started, picking up a butcher knife and walking up to Meredith, "You are a council member. And the council was formed to protect the people of this town from vampires and yet, here you all are, just looking the other way, ignoring your responsibilities. Like you and your vampire blood. So I'm asking you, do you ever feel remorse? Because you should."_

_Ric then lunged at her, cutting her side with the knife, making her drop the coffee before running to the front door. Before she could escape Ric cut her off and she ran up the stairs and into the bathroom managing to lock two of the doors but before she could lock the third, Ric was there trying to force his way in. Meredith found a pair of scissors and stabbed Ric in the hand, causing him to howl in pain and back away from the door long enough for her to lock the door. She looked down where Ric had cut her and saw that it was bleeding intensely._

As I came back to the real world I turned to Damon.

"We have to get back to my house." I told him urgently, " Ric's gone psycho and is going to kill Meredith."

" Isn't Blondie there to stop her." Damon said, picking up speed

" I don't know, I didn't see her." I told him before taking out my phone and calling Aurora.

" What's up?" Aurora answered

" Where are you guys?" I asked her

" At Alaric's apartment." she replied, " Where looking for his wedding ring so Bonnie can use it in her spell."

" You have to get back to the house." I told her, " Ric's gonna kill Meredith."

" Okay." she said before hanging up

* * *

><p>When Damon and I got to the house we got out of the car and ran into the house. I was about to run upstairs when Damon grabbed my arm and mouthed 'stay here'. I nodded and he walked towards the kitchen. As I was waiting for him I saw Ric bandaging the hand I had seen Meredith stab as he walked down the stairs.<p>

" Hey there." he greeted when he saw me

" Hi." I said, " Where's Meredith?"

"Oh, she got called into the hospital for a last minute surgery, but she'll be back later." he lied

I nodded and asked, " What happened to your hand?"

"Oh, I – I broke a coffee cup and sliced my hand open trying to pick up the pieces." he lied again, coming closer to me " Is Damon with you?"

Now it was my time to lie, " No."

I noticed the knife that had been dropped by the door and looked back at Ric, he was about to go for the knife when Damon grabbed him from behind and gave him the sleeper hold.

"Don't hurt him!" I exclaimed

"I'm trying not to." Damon replied as Ric passed out and Damon put him on the couch.

Just then Stefan, Elena, Aurora, and Jace ran in.

" What happened?" Jace asked

" Ric happened." I told him

Stefan looked wary before saying, " Elena, I'm gonna need you to come upstairs with me."

"Why?" she asked

" I'm gonna need your help." he said before grabbing her arm and leading her upstairs

* * *

><p>The next morning Bonnie arrived and preformed the spell to get rid of Ric's alter ego and we were now sitting at the dining table.<p>

"Abby says that all the dying and coming back to life might have chipped away at Alaric's psyche, making it easier for the darkness to take hold." Bonnie explained before holding up a jar of herbs, "These herbs are the binding element of the spell. He needs to take them twice a day. I'll get you more. Abby and I are gonna work on the garden."

"How is she doing?" I asked her

"The transition's been hard, but I think she'll be okay." Bonnie told me, " Eventually. I'm gonna go back and stay with her for a while, it'll give us a chance to work things through."

"Bonnie, I'm sorry." I apologized, " I didn't want this to happen. If there was anything that I could do to make it different, I…"

Bonnie silenced me by wrapping her arms around me.

" I know." she said

" Please say that you forgive me." I said

" Of course I do."

* * *

><p>After Bonnie had left I sat down on the couch and decided to call Jeremy.<p>

" Hello?" he answered

"Hey stranger." I responded

"Hey, are you checking up on me?" Jer asked me

" Do you need checking up on?"

" Well, I'm not flunking any of my classes yet." he laughed, " And I got a dog."

" Hey, have you talked to Alaric lately?" I asked, Elena had filled me in on the letter Ric was going to send to Jeremy

"No, why? Is everything okay?"

" Yeah, everything's fine." I lied, " I just really wanted to hear your voice."

"Okay. Hey, can I call you later?" Jer asked, "I'm actually on my way out with some friends."

"Yeah – um- of course, Jer. Go out, go have fun." I told him, " But don't have to much fun." Jeremy laughed at this, " I miss you, Jer."

"Yeah. Yeah, I miss you too." Jer said before hangings up

* * *

><p>Later that day, Damon called me over to the boarding house to reveal out discovery to Stefan. When Damon and I walked into the living room, carrying our treasure, we saw Stefan drinking.<p>

" Little early in the day for you, isn't it?" I asked

" Just having a little toast," Stefan replied

" To what?" Damon asked

" Control."

" If you're happy, I'm happy." Damon said

" Why are you two so happy?" Stefan asked us, "Sage double-crossed you, tree's a pile of ash, Alaric's got a psychopathic alter ego."

" You know, Stefan, we're a philanthropists, we make the world a better place. Restoring bridges, landmarks, and…" I trailed off and Damon ripped the paper that had been covering the Wickery Bridge sign

"Historical signs made of the same white oak as the Wickery Bridge.' Damon finished for me

Stefan set his drink down before getting up and coming over to us.

"They think all the wood burned." he said

" We sold our rage." I told him, " You should have seen us."

" We have a weapon." Stefan stated

"Game's back on, brother." Damon smirked, "Let's go kill some Originals."

_**Author's Note**_

**_Sorry for the long wait guys, I had to make sure this chapter was going to match with the next chapters events but I think I got it now. Well I would like to thank everyone for the favs, alerts, and reviews, it means a lot. Remember guys reviews equal happy author which equals more reviews. Until next time my lovely readers..._**

**_Audrey;D_**


	19. Murder Of One

I would once again like to thank the epicness which is grapejuice101 for being an even bigger help this week than usual.

**Chapter Nineteen-Murder Of One**

The next day Stefan, Damon, and I went over to Alaric's loft to fill him in on our newly found weapon and to get his help making the sign into stakes. Ric happened to have a table saw in his garage for making his stakes and other vampire weapons and was about to start the saw when Damon stopped him.

" Elena's coming." was all he said before there was a knock at the door and he went to answer it, " Morning sunshine."

" Hey." Elena greeted, " How's Ric?"

"Indecent." he lied, " But fine."

" So does this mean there were no issues last night?" Elena asked him

"Nope. Slept like a baby and woke up Alaric." Damon replied, "No head lines about dead council members."

" Then why do I feel like your hiding something from me?" Elena questioned

"Maybe because you're being all paranoid and control freaky. What did you bring me?" he asked before grabbing a bag Elena had and smelling what was inside, " Chocolate muffins. You know what they say, the way to a psycho killers heart is through his stomach."

" They're not for you." Elena quipped as she took the chocolate muffins back.

" Fine." Damon said, " Sadly, Ric is going to have to miss out on Elena time today. You know, lockdown and all."

" Just take it and give it to him." Elena ordered him in defeat, giving him the chocolate muffins back, " And tell him that I miss him, okay?"

" With pleasure." Damon told her

" Please?"

" Have a great day, thanks for coming by." Damon said quickly before shutting the door in her face and turning back to us, "Walking down the stairs, opening the front door, and she's gone."

At this Alaric turned on the saw and began cutting down the sign. After he was done Damon and I began whittling the pieces into stakes while Stefan checked our work.

" This needs a sharper point." Stefan informed Damon, handing him back one of the stakes

" You got it." Damon replied

" We finally have our own stakes to kill an Original." Stefan said, " I'm not gonna miss because you two can't whittle."

" He said he got it, Stefan." I told him, rolling my eyes, " Now stop micromanaging."

" Listen, if you guys have this under control, I'm gonna call the sheriff." Ric told us, putting on his jacket, " I wanna turn myself in."

"No you don't." I told him

" I have a homicidal alter ego and unlike some people in this room I would like to take responsibility for the people I've killed."

" Ric, if you wanted to turn yourself in, you wouldn't be saying it out loud." Damon said, " Just saying."

"Hey, of all the people, you can not psycho analyze me." Ric snapped, " I killed Caroline's father. I nearly killed Meredith. Everything's changed."

"Look, you're not turning yourself in." Stefan piped up from his spot in the room, " Bonnie's herbs are working and we have Originals to kill."

" His morals get very questionable when he has revenge on the brain." I told Ric

" Klaus needs to die and we finally have a way to kill him. So you," he said pointing to Ric, " are not turning yourself in."

Damon handed me the stake he had been working on before standing up and facing Ric.

"Here's your ring." he said, holding up the cursed ring, " Put it on."

" That ring is the reason I've killed people."

" It's also the reason you're alive." Damon countered, " You're going vampire hunting, Ric. Wear it."

Ric reluctantly took the ring from Damon and gingerly put it back on his finger.

* * *

><p>When all the stakes had been made Stefan texted everyone and told them where to meet us but not why we were meeting. As Damon, Stefan, and I walked to our meeting place I heard Matt talking.<p>

" Hey, what's with the cryptic secret meeting text?" Matt asked

" I don't know." Aurora replied

" Stefan just said to meet here." Elena added

" Where's Bonnie?" Stefan asked as we walked into the clearing where Aurora, Jace, Matt, Caroline, and Elena were standing, " I texted her too."

" Bonnie's mom bailed on her." Caroline said after they had all turned to face us, " Again. So I think we should leave her out of this one."

" What are we doing here?" Jace asked

" We found some white oak." Damon replied, and shock crossed all of their faces, " Long story, wait for the movie."

" Hang on. White oak?" Elena asked him, " You have a weapon that can kill Klaus?"

" Nope." I said, throwing the duffle bag full of stakes was holding onto the ground, letting the rest of our group see the contents, " We all have a weapon."

* * *

><p>" Klaus has always been one step ahead of us, but now we have the advantage." Stefan began, " We're all armed and they're all linked, meaning we only need to kill one of them. We need to seize the best opportunity, which means we need to prepare for every opportunity."<p>

" Scenario number one." Damon said, before grabbing me and moving me away from where I was standing next to Aurora and Jace and back between him and Stefan, " You get to play Klaus."

" Wonderful." I said sarcastically

" Rebekah is our target so we distract her and catch her off guard. To do that we need to keep Klaus separate and occupied." Stefan explained, looking over at Caroline, " Caroline."

" Why do I always have to be Klaus bait?" Care questioned angrily

" Because he's a little obsessed with you." Aurora explained

" But for right now we need you to play Rebekah." Damon said, walking over to Caroline, " We use the quarter back to distract her. Just keep her taking."

" How?" Matt queried

" Act interested." Damon ordered him, " She's lonely, desperate."

" Clearly." Caroline scoffed, " She slept with you."

" Beefcake holds bombshell." Damon continued, ignoring Care's comment, " I come up from behind her, grab her arms like this." Damon grabbed her arms and holding them behind her back in a vice grip.

" Ow!" Caroline exclaimed

Stefan took this time to bring up a stake and hold it over Caroline's heart, " Gives me time for one shot." then Damon released his hold on Caroline before rejoining me and wrapping his arm around my waist, holding me close to him.

" Got it?" Stefan asked and everyone nodded, " Good. So we all have one stake, we keep it hidden and look out for any opportunity we have."

" No last minute attacks of pity for any of them." Damon said looking at me

" Don't worry about me." I assured him, " Not after what happened with Bonnie's mom."

" Barbie? Blondie?" Damon asked Caroline and Aurora

" Oh, I'm ready. Anything that will free Tyler from his sire bond to Klaus." Caroline replied and Aurora nodded in agreement

" Lost boys?"

" Do we have a choice?" Jace asked him

" Good point." Damon replied

" Elena?" Stefan asked

" I'm in." she said

" Good. We have twelve stakes, twelve shots at killing an Original. We can do this." Stefan told us, " Alright, lets try another scenario. Elena grab a crossbow. Jace you play Klaus."

Elena picked up the crossbow and aimed it right at Jace's heart.

* * *

><p>After we had gone through any and all possible scenarios of how to kill the Originals, Aurora, Jace, and I headed to town square to look out for Originals. As I got out of my car I decided to give Bonnie a call but it went straight to voice mail.<p>

" Bonnie, we're starting to get worried about you." I said, " Call me back or call Caroline. Just call someone."

I sighed, hanging up, before walking over to Jace and Aurora.

" Is it weird that Bonnie's not returning any of my calls?" I asked them

" Is it weird that Klaus' brother is in the middle of town square?" Jace questioned

Aurora and I turned to see Klaus' brother Finn walking through the square with Sage.

" That's Finn." I told them, " He's with his ex-girlfriend, Sage."

" Hasn't he been looked in a coffin for 900 years?" Aurora asked me

" They dated before then and she's been waiting for this long to see him." I explained, " Sage must be with them now."

" So what should we do?" Jace asked

" I'll call Damon." I said, " You two keep an eye on them until I get back."

I walked off towards the Mystic Grill so I wouldn't be interrupted. I called Damon but it just went to voice mail and the same thing happened when I tried again. It was weird that he didn't answer but I wasn't too worried about it. I decided to call Stefan instead and he picked up almost immediately.

" Hey." he answered

" Hey. Where are you?" I asked him

" I just got home." Stefan replied, " Why?"

" Klaus' bother, Finn, is in the town square with his ex, Sage." I explained, " We have an opportunity."

" Listen to me, Audrey, do not do anything, okay? Sage is very old and very strong." he told me, " You don't stand a chance."

" That's what I figured." I said, " So find Damon and get down here."

" What the h*ll happened to you?" Stefan asked someone in the boarding house

" Stefan?" I said

" Rebekah happened." I heard Ric groan in response to Stefan

" I think we have a problem." Stefan told me

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

At Klaus' mansion Rebekah had Damon hanging from the ceiling, wrists clamped in bear traps she had found earlier in the day.

" I found them in the shed." she told Damon, " What kind of monster would hurt a poor defenseless animal?"

" You have to admit, even for me, it's a little kinky." Damon joked

" You pretended to be interested in me then you killed me so your trampy friend Sage could steal my thoughts." Rebekah reminded him angrily, " Ever since then I've felt this incessant need to one up you. So I've decided to bleed the vervain from your system."

Rebekah ripped open Damon's shirt causing the buttons to pop and scatter all over the floor, then she took a knife and cut his across the chest making him groan in pain.

" You want to compel me to be your boyfriend?" Damon asked her incredulously

" Actually I'd rather compel you to kill your brother. Or Audrey. But, since vampires heal, bleeding you may take awhile. Better stick to the main arteries." Rebekah said before cutting his throat which then bled profusely

* * *

><p><strong>( Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

As I waited outside of Mystic Grill for Stefan I tried to get a vision to tell me what Rebekah had done to Damon but something was blocking me. I had heard Bonnie say that sometimes her powers got blocked when she was scared or worried so maybe that was happening to me. A few minutes later I saw Elena walking towards me.

" Audrey, what's going on?" Elena asked seeing worry on my face

" Rebekah kidnapped Damon, my visions aren't working and I just don't know what to do." I rushed out trying my best not to break down

"Hey, hey, hey." Elena said, trying to calm me down, " Everything will be okay."

" What if she kills him?" I asked, my voice cracking at the thought

" Audrey, you can't think that way." she told me, " You have to calm down and focus on saving him." I took a deep breath in an effort to calm myself, " Where's Stefan? Does he know?"

" He's the one that told me." I answered, spotting Stefan coming towards us, " And he's coming this way."

Elena and I waited for him to join us and as soon as he was close enough we started walking with his to the entrance of the Grill.

" How's Alaric?" I asked

" He's just banged up. Caroline and Aurora are gonna stay with him to make sure Alaric stays Alaric " he replied

" Matt just texted me and said that Finn is still in the Grill." Elena added

" I sent Jace in there too." I told them

" Good." Stefan said, " We need to plan our next move."

" Wait, wait." I said, stopping both of them, " Rebekah has Damon, our next move should be finding him."

" No." Stefan disagreed, "We need to stay on point. See an Original, kill an Original. That's the plan. "

" Yeah , that was the plan before Damon's life was hanging in the balance." I shouted, earning looks from people that were walking past us

" Look, Audrey, I understand that you're concerned about my brother's life, but if he knew, for one second, that we were even talking about missing the chance to kill these people he would lose his mind." Stefan said

" Yeah, and if the role's were reversed he would stop everything to save you." I spat

" I know what my brother would want." Stefan told me

" What he would want and what we should do are two different things." Elena piped up, siding with me

" You gonna help me with this or not?" Stefan asked, not bothering to argue anymore, and I just stared at him in disbelief, " Okay, I'll just figure it out myself."

With that Stefan turned and walked away from Elena and I.

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Back at Klaus' mansion, Damon is still stuck in the trap and is getting weaker by the moment when he hears the sound of someone walking to him. As he watches the figure get close he sees that it is Audrey.

" What are you doing here?" Damon asked her weakly, " Rebekah will kill you."

" Then hurry up and tell me what to do." Audrey said, urgently

Damon turns his heard toward his arms, which were still stuck in the bear traps.

" Open…carefully." he instructed Audrey

Audrey carefully opened one of the bear traps and Damon almost fell on the ground since he was to weak to stand. Luckily Audrey caught him in time before opening releasing his other arm. They left the room and walked down the hallway and Damon almost fell again.

" Come on, Damon." Audrey said, " We have to keep going."

Damon and Audrey make it to the parlor before Damon falls down to his knees taking Audrey down with him.

" No. Look at me. Look at me." Audrey told Damon, taking his face in her hands

" Don't be an idiot, Audrey." Damon choked out

" I'm not going to leave you." Audrey said, then she noticed that Damon was slipping into unconsciousness, " Damon?" she repositioned herself so she could hold Damon up and move her wrist towards his lips, " Hey, hey, drink."

Damon bit into her wrist feebly and began to drink. When he had gotten enough he pulled away and he looked into Audrey's dark brown eyes. As Audrey looked back into his light blue eyes they both leaned in for a kiss . When there lips were about to touch everything changed and Damon was back to hanging from the traps with Rebekah standing behind him who had been giving him the dream.

" You b*tch." Damon choked out

" It's not fun when someone messes with your thoughts, is it?" Rebekah asked him

" Actually I was having a pretty good time in there." Damon told her with a smirk

" I hope you were nicer to Audrey then you were to me." Rebekah sneered

" Oh come on, I couldn't have hurt you that bad. You didn't think that I had a thing for you, did you?" Damon asked and Rebekah just looked back at him without saying a word, " I get it. If Klaus bossed me around for a thousand years I'd be pretty desperate for attention too."

Rebekah slowly walked closer to him before stabbing him in the side with a knife, causing him to yell out in pain.

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

After Stefan had left, Elena convinced me to help kill Finn before going off to find Damon. The two of us headed into the basement of the Grill since the plan was to lure Finn to the alley behind the Grill on the other side of the door.

" So, you and Damon are finally back together?" Elena asked as we were waiting, " You to seemed close earlier."

" Yeah, we're back together." I replied simply, trying to keep my mind of Damon until we had killed the Originals

Suddenly Jace ran up to us.

" Stefan just led them outside." he told us

We listened intensely and heard something fall to the ground on the other side of the door before Sage yelled, " Finn, the stake." and someone run down into the alley. We took this as our best opportunity and opened the door. Elena raised her crossbow and aimed it at Finn, shooting it but missing his heart. I quickly ran out, grabbed the stake Stefan had dropped, and shoved it in his heart before running back into Mystic Grill with Jace and Elena and locking the door.

* * *

><p>After Finn had been killed, Stefan, Elena, and I went back to the boarding house to meet up with Ric, Caroline and Aurora.<p>

" Hey, how's Alaric?" I asked Care and Aurora as we walked into the study.

" He's okay." Care replied, " We gave him a bottle of Bonnie's herbs and he went home."

" Did you guys kill Finn?" Aurora questioned, " Did it work?"

" Nothing worked until I see Klaus' dead body myself." Stefan answered her

My phone began to ring and I took it out of my pocket, looking the call I.D. to see Bonnie's name flashing across the screen before answering it.

" Bonnie, where have you been?" I asked her immediately

" Klaus has Damon." she replied, throwing me off guard

" Klaus should be dead." I told her, " They should all be dead, we just killed Finn."

" No, Audrey, he forced me to do a spell to unlink all the siblings." she explained to me, "He's still alive."

I sighed deeply, trying my hardest not snap at Bonnie.

" Okay, Bonnie, where's Damon?" I asked her

" At Klaus' mansion." she said, " It's bad Audrey. He threatened Jeremy and my mom."

" Are you okay?" I questioned, hearing how close she was to breaking down

" I don't know." she replied, " I'm sorry I have to go. I just- I have to go."

" No, Bonnie, just-" I said but she had already hung up

I looked up at Stefan to see him storm off into the hallway and I quickly went after him.

" If you're going to save Damon, I'm coming with you." I told him

" No you're not." he snapped angrily

" Yes I am." I said grabbing his arm, forcing him to stop

" Audrey, I can't protect you." Stefan said

" I'll protect myself because I am sure as h*ll not gonna stay back here while Rebekah is torturing Damon!" I yelled

" Fine." Stefan said, seeing that I wasn't going to back down, " Let's just hurry this up."

Elena joined us as we started heading for the door.

" Just stay here with Caroline and Aurora." Stefan told her before she could anything, " We'll call you when it's over."

" Stefan, Audrey, stop." Elena said, " Klaus is stronger than both of you, we need another plan."

" What we need is for Klaus to be dead." I told her

" Guys stop, you're acting on anger." she yelled

" Anger gets things done, Elena." I shouted

" Or it'll get you both killed." She countered, " And it'll get Damon killed along with you."

" Klaus does not get to survive this." Stefan told her, " Not after everything he's done."

With that Stefan and I stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind us. Before we could make it to Stefan's car we were both and went flying back into the house, landing on the living room floor.

" Ding dong." Sage said as she walked in

Caroline and Aurora charged her but she backhanded them both, making them fall onto the ground.

" I'm not here for you two." Sage told them, then looked back at Stefan and me, " I'm here for them."

Elena tried to run but a friend of Sage came in and held her back.

" We had to kill him Sage." Stefan said, trying to get back to his feet

" Oh, you remember me." she said, kicking him in the stomach causing him to fall onto back, " Then you know I like to go all ten rounds."

Sage coughed a few times before her nose started to bleed. She wiped the blood from her nose and looked at it in shock.

" Sage?" the guy holing Elena said

Stefan stood up and caught the fist that Sage had tried hitting him with, then threw her to the ground. I stood up, feeling sore but knowing that I would be okay, and looked down at Sage who was retching while she laid on the floor.

" Troy!" she exclaimed, " Help me."

Troy let go of Elena and went to help Sage but as soon as he got close to her the same thing started to happen to him. Troy fell to the ground and both Sage and Troy started throwing up blood.

" What is happening to me?" Sage asked

None of us said anything and Sage and Troy turned gray and there veins popped as if they had been staked.

" They just died." Elena said, sounding as confused as everyone else looked

* * *

><p>" So Sage and this Troy guy die within and hour of Finn." Aurora said, repeating what we already knew<p>

" But why?" Elena asked, " Where they bitten by a hybrid?

" Hybrid bites don't look like that." Caroline told her, " Maybe Sage was so in love with Finn she just died of sadness."

" Caroline, even you must realize how ridiculous that just sounded." I said, rolling my eyes, " Plus that doesn't explain Troy."

" It's the blood." Stefan announced, "It's the blood line. It has to be, think about it. Finn turned Sage, Sage turned Troy. They're all part of the same vampire blood line that originated with Finn."

" So when an Original dies every vampire in their vampire blood line dies with them?" Aurora said, " Because that would mean…"

" If the Originals die so do all of you." I finished for her, " The entire vampire species would just be dead."

* * *

><p>Stefan and I walked into Klaus' mansion and found Damon in the ballroom hanging by his arms in bear traps that Rebekah must have put him in. He was also bleeding and had multiple cuts all over his neck and chest. When I saw him I had to try my hardest to keep the tears from escaping.<p>

" This was different in my head." Damon said

" Klaus! We're here!" Stefan yelled, " Lets do this."

" Oh good." Klaus said as he and Rebekah walked into the room, " Heroes. What do you want?"

Stefan threw the bag of white oak stakes to the ground.

" We're here to make a deal." I told him

" Audrey, Stefan, what are you doing?" Damon asked me weakly

" Eight stakes made of white oak, the part of Wickery Bridge that you," I said looking at Rebekah, " forgot to burn."

" That's impossible." Rebekah shook her head

" Actually it's not." Stefan said, " Finn's dead."

" You killed my brother?" Rebekah asked through clenched teeth

" Damon in exchange for the last eight weapons that can kill you." Stefan said

"How do I know that there aren't anymore?" Klaus questioned

" Because there aren't." I told him

" Let's be certain." Klaus said before walking over to Damon, " Leave."

" No." Damon told him

" Go on, leave." Klaus said

" Nik, he's my plaything, not yours." Rebekah said, sounding like a toddler that just got her toy taken away from her.

Klaus ignored her and grabbed Damon by the throat, forcing Damon to look him in the eyes.

" I said go home." Klaus compelled Damon before letting him go

Damon looked at Stefan and I before trying to rip his hands free from the bear traps, the trap digging through his flesh as he tried. Damon yelled in pain as he continued to get out of the trap. I had to look away when seeing him like this got to be to much to handle.

" Alright, stop, stop before you hurt yourself." Klaus stopped Damon after a few minutes, " Well, it's obvious that you can now be compelled." Klaus forced Damon to look him in the eyes again before asking him, "Minus the stake that's in my brother, how many more stakes are out there that can kill me?"

" Eleven." Damon answered against his will

" Eleven." Klaus repeated, " Really? So not eight then."

" You really shouldn't have lied." Rebekah scolded us

" I'll get you the other three." Stefan told them

" Yeah that'd be nice." Klaus said, " You go and fetch them and I'll keep Audrey here with me, the more leverage the better."

" No way in h*ll." Stefan said as I stood there unable to think of a way to respond

" See I wasn't really giving you a choice." Klaus smirked and before I could blink Rebekah had Stefan held up against the wall and Klaus was standing right front of me.

" Get away from her." Damon growled

Klaus circled me, a predator circling his prey, and stopped when he was behind me. I continued to look at Damon as Klaus leaned in and whispered into my ear.

" Look at Damon, so weak and unable to help you." he whispered, " You're so loyal to him even though he has hurt you so many times. Don't you think that he could just sleep with another girl and hurt you all over again. I say forget him because you could do so much better."

I turned away from Damon to look Klaus in the eyes, " Really? Any suggestions?"

" Why me, of course." Klaus told me, talking a step closer and closing the small distance between us, " I'm a much better choice than Damon."

" Don't listen to him, Audrey." I heard Stefan choke out

"Your right, Klaus…" I began, ignoring Stefan

Klaus smirked before bringing his lips to mine. Klaus brought his had up to cup my face and we continued to kiss deeply and I slowly grabbed the stake I had hidden in my back pocket and drove it into his stomach.

" I am loyal to him." I finished as he fell to the ground

" You missed." Klaus informed me

" No, I spared you." I told him, " Now you listen to me and you listen to me good, you're gonna let Stefan and I take Damon out of here without trying to stop us."

" Oh really?" Klaus said, taking the stake out of his chest and standing up, " Or what?"

" Or I will find some way to kill myself, leaving you without anyway to make more hybrids." I told him, " And you will get to spend the rest of your miserable eternity with a family that would rather see you dead."

Klaus and I both held our ground and few moments later Rebekah sighed and let go of Stefan.

" This is ridiculous." she said walking over to Damon and releasing him from the bear traps.

" What are you doing?" Klaus asked Rebekah furiously

" I brought him here, I get to release him. My rules now." Rebekah told him before looking at me, " Bring us the other two stakes and you all live. Take Damon as a sign of good faith."

I quickly moved away from Klaus and ran over to Damon who had fallen to his knees. Rebekah grabbed the bag of stakes and left the room. Stefan, Damon, and I looked at Klaus.

" Bring us the stakes, all of them." he said, walking up to Stefan, " Or I'll rage a war against everyone that the three of you love. Hope I'm being clear."

With that Klaus walked past Stefan and out of the room to find Rebekah.

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Klaus and Rebekah stood in another room of the mansion talking about there departed brother.

" I can't believe Finn is dead." Rebekah told Klaus

" Good riddance." Klaus said, " He was an embarrassment, Rebekah."

" He was still your brother." Rebekah snapped, " Mind your tongue."

" Fine, lets all say a prayer for Finn, who slept in a box longer than he lived as a man." Klaus said, " He's a love sick fool, he's better of in death."

Rebekah looked at him in disbelief before walking up to him, " Is that how you would talk of me if I died?"

" Well you let Stefan, Damon, and Audrey go with two stakes that could kill us so we'll see soon enough." Klaus replied, " And since when did you have a soft spot for them?"

" The three of them might fight like dogs but in the end they would all die for each other." Rebekah said, " Especially Audrey. What was that earlier anyway?"

" Just an experiment." Klaus answered, " I think I found the Salvatores biggest weakness."

" Great." Rebekah said sarcastically, " Well, at least the three of them know what family means, even if they aren't all related. You destroyed us."

"I wanted a family." Klaus told her, " They just didn't want me. Now we're unlinked and no longer responsible for each other."

" So are you leaving?" Rebekah asked him

" Soon as I get my stakes I'm gone." Klaus said, " I'm gonna take Audrey and I'll use her blood to create a new family, of hybrids."

" And if I choose to stay?"

"Than you just as pathetic as Finn." Klaus hissed before leaving his sister

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

Stefan and I carried Damon up into his room and set him down on his bed and I laid down next to him. I looked up at Damon to see that he was quickly slipping into unconsciousness.

" He needs blood, Audrey." Stefan told me, seeing how weak his bother from all the blood loss

" I now Stefan." I said, readjusting myself so I could bring my wrist to Damon's mouth, " Damon, you have to drink."

Damon bit my wrist and I winced at the initial pain, it quickly went away and Damon began to drink deeply. I looked up to see Stefan struggling with his blood lust.

" You can go Stefan." I told him, " As soon as he's back on his feet will go and grab Alaric's stake."

Stefan nodded before walking out of the room. I looked back to Damon and saw that his wounds were healing and he was starting to look a lot less pale. A few moments later Damon let go of my wrist, sat up, and looked me in the eyes.

" Thank you." he said gently

" You're welcome." I smiled before leaning to catch Damon's lips with my own.

The kiss started slow but quickly became more urgent as Damon moved over top of me and I brought my hands through his hair, bringing him closer to me. We continued to kiss for a few minutes until I had to pull away for a breather, Damon just moved from my lips to my neck.

" We have to get to Ric's." I told Damon breathlessly, " Stefan will explode if he doesn't get his stake."

" I'm sure he can wait a little longer." Damon smirked against my neck

" No, Damon, we really have to get that stake." I told him firmly

Damon sighed but pulled away and look down at me before tucking a stand of hair behind my ear.

" I love you." he told me abruptly, making me smile

" I love you, too." I said as I sat up, then I noticed his ripped shirt and the blood smeared all over his chest, " You should probably take a shower and change before we head over to Ric's."

" You should probably do the same." Damon said pointing out my bloody shirt, " You could always join me in the shower."

" Somehow I think that would be counterproductive in the whole getting to Ric's quickly thing." I told him, giving him one last kiss before getting off the bed, " I'll get changed and meet you downstairs."

" Fine." I heard Damon say disappointedly as left the room

* * *

><p>Twenty minutes later Alaric opened his door to let Damon and I in.<p>

"You're still alive." Ric said to Damon

" Yeah, for now." Damon said as we walked into Ric's apartment

" We need you stake." I told Alaric

" It's right behind these books here." Ric said, walking over to the bookshelf and moving a group of books

" A bookshelf, really?" Damon quipped as we walked over to join him, " At least I was trying to be clever about it."

" Where the h*ll is it?" Alaric asked

" Ha ha." I laughed sarcastically, " Look harder Ric."

" No, it's not here Audrey." Ric said seriously, starting to throw the books off of the shelf

Damon and I went up to the book self and started taking books off, looking for the stake.

" Maybe you just forgot which shelf you put it on." Damon suggested

" No, I didn't forget, I put it right here, a stake doesn't just vanish into thin air."

" Who else did you tell Ric?" I questioned as I continued to rip books off of the shelf

" I didn't tell anyone, Audrey, I'm-" Ric began before stopping what he was doing

" What?" I asked him

" I'm the only one that new about it, Audrey."

" No." Damon groaned as he realized what Ric was telling us, " Are you telling us that your vampire hating alter ego has a stake that can kill an entire bloodline of vampires, possible mine?"

" That's exactly what I'm telling you."

_**Author's Note**_

_**Well, hope you liked it as much as I liked writing it. I just want to let you guys know that my goal is sot have 100 reviews by the end of this story, which is like 13 more reviews. If I don't get those last 13 reviews I might get S.A.S ( Sad Author Syndrome) and that would not be pretty so make a contribution by reviewing and remember, only the readers can prevent S.A.S. Until next time my lovely readers. **_

_**Audrey;D**_


	20. Heart Of Darkness

**Chapter 20-Heart Of Darkness**

I walked down the to the basement of the boarding house carrying a bag full of all the things Alaric would need for the next few days. I looked at him through the bars of the cellar but couldn't figure out which Ric it was.

" Alaric?" I said, getting his attention

"Yep." he replied, "It's still me."

I opened up the cell door and walked in, setting the bag down on the bed Damon had moved down here for Ric.

" You know you shouldn't be in here." Ric told me, " It defeats the point of the whole 'being locked in a cellar ' thing."

" Well, you still need the basics." I said as he began to look through the bag, " Toothbrush, clothes, some bring books to help you fall asleep."

" Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." Ric said in disbelief, looking down at one of the books

" What?" I began, taking the book and looking at the title, " What no, I grabbed…" I trailed off when I realized what Damon had done, " Damon, thinks he's hilarious."

"At least one of us still has a sense of humor." Ric chuckled

" Are you sure that you…I mean, you don't have to be kept in here." I told Ric

" No, this is the right place for me." Ric replied, " At least until you guys can convince my highly uncooperative alter ego to fess up to where I, or he, hid the white oak stake."

" We've looked everywhere." I informed him, " You, the other you, hid it well."

" What's Klaus gonna do if he can't find it?" Ric questioned

" It's the only thing that will kill him so, rage war, kill people." I replied, moving to lean against one of the cell walls, " You know, Klaus stuff."

We stood there in silence for a few minutes before I moved to sit in an empty chair in front of Ric.

" Listen, Stefan is gonna watch over you for a little while." I told him, " Now that Klaus knows where Jeremy is it's not safe so, Damon and I are gonna go to Denver and pick him up."

" Where is Elena during all of this?" Ric asked, " I expected her to be the first one to go and get him."

" I convinced her to stay here and keep Bonnie company." I explained

" Well, be careful up there." Ric told me

" I will." I said, getting up and heading out of the cellar and locking the door, " See you in a few days, Ricky boy."

I heard Ric chuckle once more as I made my way out of the basement.

* * *

><p>I walked into the living room, leather jacket in hand, to find Damon and Stefan standing around.<p>

" Have you ever flown first class?" Damon asked when he saw me

" Who'd you have to compel for that?" I asked him

" Please." Damon scoffed, " I used miles."

I laughed as Damon picked up our bags and headed out to his car. I turned to look at Stefan.

" Word of warning Stefan, if you kill my last guardian you will definitely be off the friend list." I warned Stefan, trying to keep a serious face but failing immensely.

" Duly noted." Stefan said, cracking a small smile, " Be safe."

I smiled back at him before heading out to Damon.

* * *

><p>After our flight Damon and I were told that Jeremy was hanging out at some batting cages. We walked down the aisle until I finally spotted him.<p>

" There he is." I said and we quickly made it over to where he was and watched as he missed the ball that came at him.

" Next time we compel him, remind me to make him better at baseball." Damon smirked

I was about to call for him when something dawned on me.

"Jeremy doesn't know about us." I stated, looking at Damon

" We've been dating for months and you still haven't told him?" Damon asked me in disbelief

" I've only talked to him once and I kinda had other things on my mind." I told him

" Well then this should be an entertaining trip, talk to the dead, find out which Originals we can kill, drop a bombshell to Jeremy."

" I'll tell him when we're alone." I said to Damon, " And let's just hope that during this road trip you don't get attacked by some crazy vampire with a baseball bat."

" Those things usually don't happen as often as you might think they do." Damon said, rolling his eyes

" Are you sure about that?" I asked rhetorically before heading towards the batting cage Jeremy was in, " Hey Jer."

" Audrey?" Jeremy said in surprise when he saw me, then he saw Damon standing behind me, " What's wrong?"

* * *

><p>" Katherine sired us, Rose sired Katherine, all we need to do is find out who sired Rose." Damon explained as we walked around the batting cages<p>

" So you traveled across the county to get me to talked to a dead vampire?" Jeremy asked us

" Dead vampires redundant." Damon replied, " But yes."

" I would do it but I can't summon ghosts, but you can." I said

" Actually, I can't." Jeremy countered, " I could talk to Anna and Vicki because I knew them. I've never even met Rose."

" What good is you dying and coming back if you can't talk to a ghost when I need you to?" Damon said, clearly frustrated

" Rose spent a lot of time running from Klaus as well, she and Damon were close so maybe we can use him as a connection." I suggested

" Fine, fine." Jeremy agreed, " But can we do this later, my friend just got here. And yes Damon, I actually have some. I'll call you when I'm done."

Jeremy gave me a quick hug before walking past me. I turned around to call him and that's when I saw Kol coming up to us, holding a wooden baseball bat over his shoulder.

" Damon, it's Kol." I warned him, backing away

Damon turned around in time to for Kol to hit him across the face, breaking the bat in half in the process.

" What are you doing?" Jeremy yelled at Kol

" Jeremy, get back he's an Original." I told him

" What?" Jeremy said

" No hard feelings mate, but we're not buds." Kol told him, grabbing another baseball bat, " You know, I'll never get used to aluminum but hey, at least it won't break."

When Kol tried to hit Damon with the second bat, Damon picked up the wooden bat, which hat broken off to form a fairly effective stake, and drove it through his chest, momentarily delaying him.

" Did you kill him?" Jeremy asked is shock

"No, but it will give us a head start." Damon said, picking himself off the ground and holding onto me for support, before guiding me towards the exit, " Come on."

* * *

><p>About a half an hour later the three of us pulled up in front of a motel where we would be staying for the night.<p>

" For the record she was the one that wanted to stop at a motel, not me." Damon told Jeremy as we grabbed out bags from the car.

I rolled my eyes at him before walking over to Jeremy.

" So where are we?" Jer asked as we walked up to our room

" The corner of somewhere and nowhere where Kol can't find us." Damon replied

" I can't believe Kol was a vampire." Jeremy said

" Well, didn't you find it weird that you made a friend so fast?" Damon asked him, " Have you met you?"

" Not helping." I told Damon, " Plus, this is coming from the guy who only has two friends."

When we got to our room I opened it and let the guys walk in past me before I went in and shut the door.

" Well this should work." I said, looking around the room, " Right Jer?"

" Yeah." Jer replied, " Doesn't really matter."

" Alright Whoppie." Damon said, closing the shades so no one could see us, " What do you need, candles, incense, pottery wheel?"

" It doesn't work that way." Jeremy said, starting to get annoyed with Damon

" I know, I know." Damon told him, " They push from the other side and you pull form this one."

" Alright." Jer said after taking off his sweatshirt and sitting at the dining table, " You got a picture of her?"

" A picture." Damon said incredulously, " From what, our trip to Disney land? Come on Rose, you not actually gonna make us wait are you? I know you obsessed with me."

" Ugh." I exclaimed before taking a seat next to Jeremy

" Alight, tell me something about her." Jeremy suggested

" Um, Well, she did this little thing with her tongue." Damon said jokingly as he sat on one of the beds

" Something that actually matters, Damon." I said, glaring at him

" She spent her last day in paradise." Damon started, " Soaking in the sun and reminiscing what it felt to be human. And when death came, she didn't fear it."

" I was with her on her last day." I remembered, " And she definitely wasn't in paradise."

" It was in the dream he gave me." I heard someone say, I looked up and saw Rose sitting on the other bed and smile at us.

" She's here." Jeremy told Damon

* * *

><p>" Are you lonely on the other side?" I asked her<p>

" No." Rose replied, " I enjoy it. I was running so much when I was alive, now I have the freedom to do what ever I want."

" She said she's fine." Jeremy said, filling Damon in on what Rose was saying

" She still hot?" Damon asked

" Tell him he's still dripping with sex too." Rose said, causing both Jeremy and I to look at her in shock, " Fine, tell him I miss him."

" She misses you." I told Damon

" Tell him I was always rooting you two." Rose told me and I avoided the look I knew I was getting from Jeremy

" She says she misses both of you." Jeremy lied to Damon

" Unfortunately I don't have any news on the siring front." Rose told Jeremy and I , " Klaus didn't sire me, no Original did. It was Mary Porter."

" She was sired by someone named Mary Porter." I explained to Damon, " Ring any bells?"

" Scary Mary." Damon groaned, " Well, where is she Rose?"

" I didn't keep track of her when I was alive, much less now." she replied , " Tell him to sit tight, relax, I'll see what I can find out."

* * *

><p>A couple hours after Rose went off to find Mary, Damon went out to grab ice which left me and Jeremy alone. I was going through my bag when Jeremy spoke up.<p>

" What's going on between you and Damon?" he asked

" What do you mean?" I asked, playing dumb,

" You know what I mean." Jer snapped, " Don't try playing dumb either because I heard what Rose said."

I sighed and sat down on the edge of my bed and looked over at Jeremy. I was about to tell him about Damon and I when Damon walked in.

" Everything alright in here?" Damon questioned, sensing the tension in the room

" Yep, everything is fine." I replied, getting back to my feet and grabbing my toothbrush

" Okay." Damon said, setting down the bucket of ice, " Well, I'm gonna freshen up, you might wanna get some rest. I'm sure Rose will make herself known when she gets back."

* * *

><p><strong>( Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Back in Mystic Falls Rebekah was still processing the news Ester had given her upon her arrival back. Ester had told her only daughter that she was dying.

" How are you dying?" Rebekah inquired, " I thought Ayana had preserved your body with a spell."

"She did." Ester said, "I'm drawing my power from the Bennett witch line. When Abby died the connection was severed. So my body has weakened."

" Well if you've come to spend you last moment with your loving daughter prepare to be disappointed." Rebekah spat at Ester bitterly, " You should have spent less time plotting my death."

" Is that what you think I've been doing on the other side?" Ester questioned Rebekah but got no reply so she continued, " I've been looking over you for a thousand years of joy and heartbreak. Your fights with Klaus, the nights you cried yourself to sleep crying my name. Not a day has gone by that I wasn't right there with you."

" And yet you still tried to kill me." Rebekah choked out, trying her hardest not to cry.

" Because it shouldn't have been a thousand years, Rebekah." Ester told her firmly, " No one should live that long."

" But I haven't lived at all." Rebekah said

" I'm sorry Rebekah." Ester apologized, taking Rebekah's hands in her own, " I'm so, so sorry."

As Ester held Rebekah's hands she began to shake before falling to the ground, dead. Rebekah stared down at her mothers body in shock when she her Klaus walk into the room.

"What's going on?" Klaus asked, taking in the scene in front of him

" She's dead."

* * *

><p><strong>( Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

As I was drifting off to sleep I heard Damon walk back into the room. I looked up to see him walking around the room wearing his shirt unbuttoned, before he grabbed a bottle of alcohol and pouring some in a plastic cup. I continued to watch him as he downed the entire drink. He turned to look at me and I smiled at him, making him smile back and get up from his spot across the room. He quietly walked over to the bed I was laying in and laid down next to me.

" You never told me about what you did for Rose, you know." I whispered so I didn't wake up Jeremy

" It didn't seem important." Damon told me

"Why don't you let people see the good in you?" I asked

" Because when people see good they expect good." Damon explained, " And I don't want to have to live up to peoples expectations."

" Well, I don't expect you to be anything but yourself, Damon." I said, looking him in he eyes, " I happen to love you the way you are."

I saw Damon move to bring his lips down to mine but I remembered Jeremy was only a few feet away and stopped him.

" Will you come out side with me?" I asked, taking his hand in mine

Damon nodded and we quickly and quietly moved out of the room.

" Now that you got me out here, what are you gonna do with me?" Damon asked suggestively

" Something I've been dying to do all day." I smirked before closing the small distance between us and bringing my lips to his.

As the kiss deepened I felt my back pressed against one of the walls, leaving no more space to move. I jumped up and wrapped my legs around Damon's waist and wove my hands through his hair, trying to bring him even closer to me. Damon had one his hands on my thigh and the other on my lower back, holding me to him. He moved his lips down to my neck for a moment to allow me to breath , but I quickly brought his lips back up to mine.

" Audrey?" I heard Jeremy say from the doorway of our room

" Oh my God." I said as I detangled myself from Damon, " Jeremy."

" Rose found Mary." Jeremy told us, " She lives in Kansas."

" Okay then. Lets go." Damon said before walking past Jeremy and back into the room.

Jeremy looked at me with a look that was somewhere between hurt and disappointment before he walked back into the room.

* * *

><p>After our long, silent, and very awkward drive to Scary Mary's house in Kansas we got out and looked up at the massive mansion.<p>

" This is the address." Jeremy confirmed

" Wait here." I told him before turning back to the house

" What? Why?" Jeremy asked, " So you two can make out some more?"

" Okay." I said turning towards him, " I was gonna do this when we got back home but I see I have to do this now. Damon and I have been dating since long before you moved to Denver, so I will do whatever I want with Damon when ever I want to because I can."

" Sounds hot." Damon smirked, when I turned to glare at him his smirk only grew

" Also I would like it very much it he listened to me and stayed here where you have less of a chance of getting hurt." I added sweetly turning back to Jeremy

Jeremy sighed but reluctantly got back into the car and Damon and I turned back to Scary Mary's house once more before going inside with Damon in the lead. It was pitch black when we entered the house so I turned on the light on my phone so we could see around us. What we saw was piles of papers and other junk littered all around the floor.

" Ugh." Damon groaned in disgust, " I hate vampire hoarders."

" Who is this Mary person exactly?" I asked him

" Scary Mary, she's really old and super creepy." Damon told me

" And how do you know her?" I asked, already having a good idea

Damon looked back at me and confirmed my assumption.

" That's what I thought." I said

" What?" Damon said, " I said creepy, not ugly."

" Wow." I said, " Sometimes I forget you are a huge manwhore."

" Ouch." Damon exclaimed overdramatically, " That hurts."

I rolled my eyes at him as we moved towards the stairs. As we were about to climb to the second floor we heard a crash coming from one of the back rooms. We moved over to the door and opened it, walking inside. I moved my light across the room until it landed on Scary Mary hanging from a wall, a stake in her heart.

" Mary." Damon said

" Quite contrary." Someone said from behind us and we both turned around the same time the lights turned on to see Kol sitting behind us.

* * *

><p>" Shame about Mary." Kol said, walking around the room holding a aluminum baseball bat, " She used to be a blast. I don't quite know what happened. I fear the time she spent with my family might have ruined her. She was a bit of an Original groupie."<p>

" And were you her favorite?" I asked him

" You mean, did I turn her?" he questioned, " I think I did. But no wait, maybe it was Rebekah. And there was also a Klaus period. And lets not forget the Elijah affair. I spoke to my brother, I know you're trying to find out who you descended from. Now you never will. So, where did we leave off?"

Kol hit Damon in the knee with the bat, knocking him to the ground, before hitting him in the arm and breaking it. I flinched at this but couldn't do much to help him against Kol.

" Audrey, get out." Damon groaned in pain

I ran to the door but before I could get out I was stopped by Kol.

" According to my brother your off limits. Please don't test me" Kol said before throwing me onto a bed on the other side of the room where I managed to hit my head on the headboard.

Damon quickly got off the ground and made his way over to Kol, grabbing him by the throat.

" Don't touch her." Damon growled at Kol

Kol head budded him and sent Damon flying over by Mary's body.

"Oh my." Kol exclaimed, " I've hit a nerve. Relax darling, I just want us to be even. You snapped my neck, you killed my brother, and then you humiliated me." with this Kol hit Damon with as much force as possible three times before stopping, " There, now we're even."

After that Kol disappeared from the room and I ran over to Damon and helped him get to his feet.

" Are you alright?" I asked him

" Yeah." Damon said before looking down at his right arm which was bent at a weird angle. He snapped it back into place, causing me to flinch once more at the sound, "That's better."

Damon brought his hand to my hair and moved it to the side to see that I had a cut on my forehead from hitting the headboard.

" Are you alright?" he queried, " You're bleeding."

" I'll be fine." I assured him

" Good." he said before smiling at me, " You were right."

" About what, exactly?" I asked

" Road trips aren't safe." he replied, " Every time I get attacked by a crazy, baseball swinging, vampire."

" Well, we better get back to Mystic Falls before you get attacked again." I laughed

Damon wrapped his arm around my waist and led me back to the safety of the car. As we drove back to Mystic Falls I realized exhausted I was and I rested my head against window. I felt myself slowly drifting off to sleep as the darkness consumed me.

* * *

><p><strong>( Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Damon looked over at Audrey to see that she had fallen asleep. He slowly took her hand in his so he didn't wake her up and let a small smile form on his lips as he realized that he had finally found someone that excepted him for being the way he was. He didn't need to put up his walls and shut her out, didn't need to act different to keep her around, didn't have to do anything but be himself and he would make sure that he never did anything to lose her again.

Jeremy sat in the back seat of the car and watched as Damon held on to Audrey's hand, fuming at the thought of them being together. She deserved better than the than the Damon, the psychotic vampire that had killed so many people included Jeremy himself. As he continued to think about everything wrong that Damon had done he felt a presence and he turned to see Rose sitting next to him.

" Are we there yet?" she asked jokingly, " Don't tell them I'm here, just listen. I know you want to stop it, protect her from it. But you're young, you don't see what I see. It's not just that see makes him a better person, and she does, but he changes her too. Damon challenges her, surprises her, he makes her question her life, beliefs. You may not see it now, but trust me, Damon is the best thing for her. They're both the best thing for each other."

Jeremy let what Rose told him sink in as he looked back at Audrey and Damon in the front seat. He turned back to look at Rose again but she was now gone.

* * *

><p>Psychotic Ric had made an appearance to Stefan earlier in the evening and told him that the white oak stake was hidden in the caves where no vampire could enter. Klaus and Rebekah were close by and Rebekah volunteered to take Alaric to the caves to retrieve the last weapon that could kill and original. When they reached the cave Ric walked right through leaving Rebekah, who was unable to follow him.<p>

" Go get it." she told him, " You know I can't get in."

Ric, who was still being possessed by his crazy alter ego, walked over to a crevice in the wall and removed the white oak stake before turning back to Rebekah. He watched her as he moved to sit on the coffin that had help Esters body for over a thousand years.

" Know, why would I give you the one thing that requires everyone to keep me alive?" Ric asked her

" Are we bargaining now?" Rebekah questioned, "Fine, what's your offer?"

" There is only one stake out there." Ric began, " Which means only one Original has to die. Help me and I'll make sure it's not you."

" Tenuous. But points for effort." Rebekah told him, " But you see, I don't want one Original to die." Rebekah looked down at her feet before walking right into the cave, passing the boundary. Ric stood up in shock as she made her way over to him, knowing that if she were a vampire that she wouldn't have been able to enter, " I ant them all to die."

" How did you do that?" Ric asked

" It was easy to fool Niklaus but I thought you of all people would understand." Rebekah said, " After all, my son did use your body at one point."

" You're not Rebekah." Ric stated the obvious

" No, my name is Ester." Ester said, " And we have a great deal in common."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Authors Note<strong>_

_**Well, I hope you guys loved reading this as much as I loved writing it. Make sure to review if you liked it because I love hearing feedback on how I'm doing and what you guys want to see. Leave a review and tell me what you liked and what you didn't. Also i would like to thank grapejuice101 for all the help with this chapter and to everyone that reviewed, faved, and alerted this story, it means a lot. Until next week…**_

_**Audrey;D**_


	21. Do Not Go Gentle

**By now two things should be super obvious. I do not own the vampire Diaries and grapejuice101 is the most helpful and awesome person ever.**

**Chapter Twenty-One- Do Not Go Gentle**

_Damon pulled up in front of my house and turned to look at me, still asleep, before turning to Jeremy in the back seat of his car._

" _Head inside Jeremy, your sister is waiting for you." Damon told Jer_

" _What about Audrey?" Jeremy asked him_

" _I'll take care of her." Damon assured Jeremy_

_Jeremy glared at Damon before grabbing his things, getting out of the car, and heading inside the house. Damon put his car back into drive after he was sure Jeremy was inside and began the drive to the boarding house._

I woke up from my vision as the sun stared to filter through the windows and I noticed that I was resting my head against Damon's bare chest. I looked up and saw that he was still asleep. I looked around to see that I was in Damon's room, not that that surprised me from what I had seen in my vision. I looked at the clock and saw that it was only seven am so I rested my head on Damon's chest again and decided I could sleep a little bit longer since there was no school today. As I was starting to fall asleep again I heard my phone start to ring from the bedside table but I just ignored it. Unfortunately whoever was calling me didn't let up and I heard Damon groan in annoyance as he woke up before grabbing my cell and answering it.

" What?" he growled

I looked up at Damon as the other person replied.

" It's Caroline." he said, holding the phone out to me

" This better be important because I'm trying to sleep." I told Caroline as I sat up

" We have a decade dance to set up for." Caroline said, overly chipper for this early in the morning

" Funny, I don't recall signing up for the dance committee." I said

" You didn't, I did." Care told me, " Be here in thirty minutes or I'll physically remove you from the boarding house." and with that she hung up.

I sat my phone down before making to move off the bed but Damon grabbed my arm and pulled me down so I was on top of him.

" Where do you think you're going?" Damon asked smirking, all ready wide awake

" You heard the Mystic Queen. I have to help with the decade dance, or else." I made a move to get off the bed again but Damon just wrapped his arms around my waist, making it impossible for me to move.

" But I want you to stay with me." Damon whined

" Here's a thought, you can take me to the dance tonight." I suggested

" As much as I love you, decade dances aren't my thing." Damon told me

" Come on, it's the twenties." I persisted, " Since you were actually around then, I was expecting you to teach me some moves."

" I have some moves in mind." Damon said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively

" I'd love to hear all about them." I smirked before bringing my lips to his.

Our kiss quickly became more passionate and I felt Damon's hands move to my hips. I broke the kiss to removed my shirt and throw it to the ground before continuing. Damon flipped us over so he was hovering over me and I wove my hands through his hair, holding him closer to me. As we were making out I heard someone clear their throat and both Damon and I both turned to see Stefan standing in the doorway.

" Seriously Stefan?" Damon said, looking at his younger brother

" Sorry to interrupt." Stefan said awkwardly, and I felt my face turn red in embarrassment since I in my bra and jeans I grabbed one of the sheets and covered myself before Stefan continued, " You should probably call Ric, Rebekah took him to the caves last night to retrieve the last white oak stake and I haven't heard from him since."

" And that was so important you had to tell me now?" Damon questioned him, " Really?"

" Just thought you should know." Stefan said before looking at me, " Sorry."

" It's okay." I said and Stefan left the room as quickly as possible

" Now, where were we?" Damon asked before trying to continue what we had started but I stopped him

" I was about to get ready and help with the decade dance and you were going to call Ric." I told him.

" You're no fun." Damon huffed before moving to lay next to me

I laughed as I got of the bed and put my shirt back on before heading to my old room and getting ready for the day ahead of me.

* * *

><p>I got to the school and headed inside to find Caroline, who wasn't that hard to find since she was bossing everyone around from a table towards the front of the room. I walked up to her and saw that she was talking to Elena.<p>

" You're late." Care said when she saw me

" By like, five minutes." I said, rolling my eyes, " You're lucky I came at all."

" Where do you want this?" Elena asked Caroline while holding up a tacky looking chandelier

" You know what," Care began as she took the chandelier from Elena, " If Rebekah wanted to hang this monstrosity she should have shown up to do it herself."

Elena and I laughed as Caroline turned around and handed the chandelier to some girl and said, " Just…no."

Then she spotting Jeremy and Matt hanging cardboard stars from the ceiling and freaked out.

" What are you doing? You can't just hang them. They're supposed to trickle down." she told them before turning back to Elena and I , " Look at them all bromancy."

" Yeah, I asked Matt to help Jeremy readjust." Elena said, " He got him his old job back at the Grill."

" That was nice of him." Care commented

" Jeremy's got a lot on his mind." I added, " The whole thing with Ric's got him all stressed out."

" You sure it had nothing to do with witnessing you and Damon getting all hot and heavy in a sceevy motel?" Care asked me

" How did you know about that?" I questioned her

" News travels fast in Mystic Falls." she told me with a smile, " Are you bringing him to the dance tonight?"

" I'm not sure." I said taking out my phone to text Damon, " Give me a sec."

_R u taking me 2nite?_

_Audrey;D_

After a few seconds he texted back.

_Sure. But I'm not dressing up._

_-D_

_I'll take what I can get._

_Audrey;D_

" Yep, I've officially got a date to this dance." I replied to Caroline

" What about you Elena?" Care asked

" What do you mean?" Elena questioned, " I thought you, Bonnie, and I were going as girl dates."

" Bonnie has a date." Care told us

" What?"

" Jamie called and wanted to see her so she asked him." Care filled us in, " So here's a thought Elena, why don't you go with Stefan."

"Yeah, I want to see Stelena back together again." I smiled and both Caroline and Elena gave me weird looks

" Stelena?" Elena finally asked

" Well, you know how celebrities have cute couple names like Brangelina." I said, " Stefan and Elena makes Stelena."

" What about me and Tyler." Caroline asked

" Forbes and Lockwood, Forwood."

" Wow, I can't believe you took the time to figure all of this out." Elena told me

" That's what happens when I get too board I guess." I explained, " So are you gonna ask him or not."

" Sure, why not." Elena sighed

" Perfect, because Stefan is your epic love." Caroline said

" Exactly, and we are not giving up on your relationship without a fight."

* * *

><p>After the gym was decorated to Caroline's standards Elena and I headed back home to get ready for the dance. I went to my room and got into my light blue flapper dress and matching heels before heading towards Aurora's room. I knocked once, waiting for her to answer.<p>

" Come in." she yelled and I walked inside to see her in front of her mirror added the finishing touches to her sea green flapper dress.

" Hey, Aurora." I greeted her before sitting on her bed

" Hey." she replied, " Where's your date?"

" Not sure." I said, " Yours?"

" He said he'd pick me up in a few." Aurora told me before I got a text

_Ran into problems. Meet me at the dance?_

-_D_

" Well that's incredible vague." I said to myself before texting back a reply

_OK_

_Audrey;D_

I looked back at Aurora as she wrapped her sea green boa around her neck and the turned towards me.

" How do I look?" she asked

"Amazing, as usual."

" Why thank you." she said, " What did Damon say?"

" He's running late. Would you and Jace mind giving me a lift to the dance?"

" Of course not." she said right before the doorbell rang, " That's him, come on."

* * *

><p>By the time we got to the dance it was already packed with people dancing and having a great time, this dance was official a success Jace and Aurora went onto the dance floor leaving me alone, waiting for Damon to arrive. A few minutes I felt someone behind me and turned around to see that it was Klaus.<p>

" What are you doing here?" I snapped

" Rebekah convinced me to come for one last hurrah. I'm leaving tomorrow." he explained

"Good, unless you haven't noticed, nobody wants you here." I quipped

" No need to be harsh love, especially since you'll be coming with me." Klaus smiled

" Excuse me?"

" Well, since you're the only way I can make my hybrids you didn't think I would leave you here."

" I'm not going anywhere with you." I spat before trying to walk away from him only to be stopped by him grabbing my upper arm

" The thing is love, I'm not asking." Klaus said, his face turning serious, " I'm just letting you know that, one way or another, you're leaving town tomorrow. If I were you I would go quietly so I don't have to start killing off the people you care about."

I looked around the crowd of people in the gym and spotting Damon walking in the front door. I locked eyes with him and he saw Klaus and was standing next to me within a second.

" Let go of her." he growled

Klaus smirked before letting go of my arm and looking down at me once more before walking onto the dance floor. Damon watched as he walked away then looked back to me.

" Are you okay?" he asked

" Yeah, I'm fine." I lied before changing the subject, " Where have you been all day?"

" Trying to figure out what Ric's been up to." he told me

" What do you mean?"

" He hasn't been talking the herbs Bonnie gave him. I found them at his loft, untouched."

" Oh my God." I said, " We have to find Elena and Stefan and tell them."

Damon looked around the gym and spotted Stefan and Elena dancing on the other side of the gym. We made our way over to them in time to see Stefan dip Elena and spin her under his arm. When they noticed us Damon said, " We need to talk." and we all headed to out of the gym.

* * *

><p>Once we had made our way to an empty hall way Damon explained everything he had found out earlier in the day.<p>

" If Alaric's sick then we need to find a cure." Elena said when Damon was finished

" We tried medicine, we tried magic." Damon said

" How about we get him off of vervain." Stefan suggested, " Compel him."

" To what? Pretend to be Alaric?" Damon asked incredulously, " The guy we know is gone. We're talking about someone who not only hates vampires, but vampire sympathizers. Which makes one of his most obvious targets, I don't know," he turned to look at me, " you!"

" What, you think he'd go after Audrey?" Stefan asked , getting a glare from Damon in reply

" So what are you suggesting we do exactly?" I questioned Damon

" I'm suggesting we put him out of his misery." Damon told us bluntly

" What?" Elena and I exclaimed

" No way in h*ll!" Jeremy added as he walked into our conversation

" Oh come on, it's what he would want." Damon continued, " It's a mercy killing."

" You're out of your mind!" Jeremy yelled before turning and walking out of the gym with Elena following after him

I sighed before going after them.

" Jeremy!" I heard Elena say when I caught up with the two of them

" Jeremy, stop." I said

" This is Alaric we're talking about." Jer said when he turned to face Elena and I, " He looked out for us, now we need to do the same for him."

" No one's gonna hurt him." Elena assured him

Jeremy was about to walk away when I grabbed his arm.

" Hey, look at me Jer, I promise, nothings gonna happen to Ric." I said and Jeremy started to calm down

" Audrey." I heard someone call and I saw Ester standing a few feet behind Jeremy, " If you wish to help your friend Alaric, I suggest you come with me."

" Elena, Jeremy, go inside and get Damon and Stefan." I told them, " Now."

They both ran inside, leaving me with Ester.

" I wish you no harm but , willingly or not, you will come." Ester turned to leave and I reluctantly followed her.

* * *

><p>" You'll forgive me for taking you from the dance this evening." Ester said as we walked through the Mystic Falls cemetery, " That's the burden of being the psychic , I'm afraid. You blood is a potent binding agent for a witches spell."<p>

" Just please don't hurt Alaric." I begged her

" She's not hurting me." Ric said , walking towards us

" Ric." I said before starting to go towards him before realizing something wasn't right, " What's going on? What are you doing with him?"

" I am going to remake him." Ester replied

" Remake him?" I repeated

" Make him strong, fast, like my children." Ester began to explain as she moved to a spot next to Ric, " Indestructible. For one last time I am going to tap into the dark magic I used a thousand years ago. Like my husband Mikael before him, I will make Alaric into a true hunter, a vampire to end all vampires."

" You can't create another Original." I told her, " What if he turns out to be an even bigger monster than your children?"

" He won't now that he has embraced his darkest aspect his hatred for them will become more pure and uncompromising. In death, that hatred will be magnified."

" You don't know that, you don't know anything about him." I argued with her

" That is where you're wrong." Ester said, " Each time he died wearing that ring, during his brief journey into death I was there on the Other Side. I spoke to him, nurtured him, knowing that each death brought him closer to his true self. Vampires took everything from him, now he's getting his vengeance."

* * *

><p>We moved into an old tomb and Ester began to light candles as I stood in front of a small bowl and Alaric who was on the other side of the bowl.<p>

" Ric, this isn't what you want." I said, " It's not who you are."

" You don't know who I am, Audrey." Ric said darkly, " You only know the weakest parts of me, the man who lost his way, befriending vampires instead of killing them."

" You don't mean that."

" They're all monster." Ric snapped, " The blood of their victims is on my hands. Jenna's blood is on my hands."

" When you are ready." Ester told Ric, making her way over to us, before holding out her hands to Ric.

" No Ric, don't do this." I begged, backing away from Ester, " I won't help you. I won't give you my blood, you're gonna have to kill me."

" That won't me necessary." Ester told me

She directed her hand towards me, clenching it into a fist, and I felt a shooting pain in my heart. I put my hand over my heart but the pain transferred to my palm and when I looked at my hand a cut opened up across my palm. Ester grabbed my arm and held it over the bowl until enough blood had filled it, then she pushed me away and I grabbed my bleeding hand.

" Drink." Ester ordered Ric, " And let it be done."

" No, Ric, please don't." I tried one last time before brought the bowl to his lips and downed the blood.

" Is it finished?" Ric asked Ester

" Not just yet." Ester told him before stabbing him in the heart

* * *

><p>I ran over to Ric and rested his head on my lap before removing the stake from his chest.<p>

" He'll wake soon. When he does he may, for a time, be his old self. If so you can say your good byes before his transition is complete." Ester said, handing me a handkerchief for my bleeding hand.

" You said you wanted to undo the evil you've created." I said as I wrapped up my hand, " But this, this is just as evil."

" Alaric will never be what my children became." Ester told me, " I have granted him enough time to complete his task. Then, when the time is right, he will die."

" How?" I asked as the tears threatened to spill over, " If he's immortal then how?"

" All you need to know is when this is all over we will have rid the world of vampires once and for all."

" Yeah, but you'll be killing the good along with the bad." I said as I got of the ground, " You're no better than Klaus!"

" Am I not?" Ester said, " I desire a world where you and your loved ones will not suffer at the hands of vampires, like your aunt Jenna did."

" Don't you dare use Jenna as an excuse for what you've done." I told her

" You may draw comfort in knowing that your aunt is not in the place that I was." Ester said, " She doesn't know the torment of the Other Side. Though made a vampire she remained pure. She knows peace. Which is all any of use can hope for."

Then something moved outside and Ester turned and headed outside. A moment later I heard Jeremy's voice.

" Where's Audrey?"

" Jeremy!" I exclaimed as I ran outside and saw Jeremy and Matt

" Let her go." Jeremy said aiming a crossbow at Ester

" How foolish of you." Ester stated, " You would risk your lives to defend those who would kill you? But if that is your choice."

Ester raised her hands and Jeremy and Matt turned there weapons onto each other.

" Matt!" Jeremy yelled, " Matt, drop your gun!"

" I can't." Matt told him, " I'm not controlling it."

" Ester stop it!" I shouted her

Right as they were about to shoot each other Ric came up behind Ester and stabbed her in the heart with the same stake that had killed him. He dropped Ester's lifeless body to the ground before looking at my bleeding hand, his chest, then his ringless hand."

"Oh my God. Where's my ring?" he asked before turning to look at me, " Tell me what happened."

* * *

><p>Alaric and I moved back into the tomb and waited for Damon and Stefan when Jeremy and Elena walked in.<p>

" Damon's here." Elena said

" And Klaus took Ester's body." Jeremy added

" Does he know about the stake?" Ric asked

" No, only that he tried to turn you into a weapon and failed." Jeremy said

" What's going on?" Elena asked as she noticed the somber mood between Ric and I.

" Listen Jeremy, Elena, I'm not gonna complete the transition." Alaric told them what he had already told me, " My dark side was dangerous enough as a human, I can't be a vampire."

" So what?" Jeremy asked, " We're just gonna lock you in here and let you die? No, no we can't."

" Listen Jeremy, it's the right thing to do." Alaric said, " Okay, after everything that has happened, after all that I've done, maybe I had it coming."

Jeremy just shook his head before trying to walk off but Elena quickly stopped him.

" Hey, Jer, wait!" Elena said before looking back at Ric, " None of this was your fault, Ric."

" Please you guys, lets not make this harder then it already is." Ric said, " You three should go. Damon's here, he'll make sure everything will go down the right way. Jeremy."

"Don't." Jeremy said, "Just don't give me some crap speech about how I need the man of the house."

" I won't." Ric said, wrapping his arms around Jeremy

Alaric let go of him and Jeremy left the room as fast as he could then Ric turned toward Elena and I.

" This is all our fault." Elena said through tears and I nodded

" You moved out, you gave your ring back, you didn't want any part of this and we forced you to stay and take care of us." I added

" Don't do that." Ric said gently, " Taking care of you two and Jeremy has been… it's been the closest I've been to the life I've always wanted."

Elena gave Ric a quick hug before heading out into the cemetery. I looked at Ric and wrapped my arms around him as the tears started to flow down my face. He hugged me back for awhile but eventfully he let go and said, " I'm gonna miss you girl."

" I'm gonna miss you too, Ricky boy." I smiled feebly

He smiled back before leading me outside of the tomb. When we got out there we saw candles lit and placed all around and Damon, Stefan, Bonnie, Matt, Jeremy, Elena, Aurora, Jace, Caroline, Tyler, and Meredith standing around, waiting for Ric. I looked once more at Ric before heading over to Damon and standing next to him. Ric watched all of us for a moment before smiling and heading back inside of the tomb.

* * *

><p>As time went on most of our group went their separate ways leaving Damon, Meredith and I in the cemetery. At the moment I was sitting outside of the tomb by myself ,while Damon and Meredith talked to Ric, drinking from the bottle of bourbon Damon had left out here. I looked off in the distance, not really focusing on anything, and began to think about what Jeremy, Elena, and I now that Ric was gone. I heard Damon making his way over to me but I didn't look at him or say anything and neither did he as he sat next to me. I took another swig of bourbon before turning to Damon.<p>

" What's wrong with me?" I asked him, my voice cracking

" Audrey, this wasn't your fault." Damon tried to reassure me

" Yes it is!" I said, jerking away when he tried to grab hold of my hand, " It's always my fault. Jenna, Aurora, my parents, and now Ric…it's all my fault." I stood up and took another sip, " No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, I can't keep the people I care about safe. It's not fair!"

I threw the half empty bottle at a tree and it shattered, the glass falling to the ground. I looked at the broken glass for a few moments before breaking down and starting to sob uncontrollably. Within seconds, Damon's arms were around me and this time I didn't move away from him.

" I don't have anyone left." I chocked out when I couldn't cry anymore

Damon pulled back so he could look me in the eyes before cradling my face in his hand.

" You have me." he told me softly

Before I could respond, Meredith walked up to us.

" I gave him a sedative." she told us, " He'll fall asleep first. He'll go comfortably."

" Thank you, Meredith." I thanked her before turning back to Damon, " You shouldn't leave him alone in there."

" It's what he wants."

" Is that really what you think he wants?" I asked him before walking over to Meredith, " Could you give me a ride home?"

" Of course." she said and I looked back at Damon one more time before following Meredith out of the woods.

* * *

><p>When I got home no one was around so I went to my room , took a shower and got into some pajamas before laying down on my bed. As I was laying there, staring at the ceiling, a vision came to me.<p>

_Damon was walking out of the tomb to see Bonnie walking towards him._

" _What are you doing here?" Damon asked her but she merely kept on walking right past him, " Hey, Bonnie. What are you sleep walking or something?"_

_Bonnie turned back to him and glared at Damon giving him a aneurism before walking into the tomb. She looked down at Ric's unconscious form then brought out the stake that had killed both him and Ester and stabbed her hand with it. Bonnie gasped as blood started to pool in her hand but , instead of breaking out of the weird trance she was in, brought her bleeding hand to Ric's mouth. Ric began to drink deeply, quickly pulling his mouth away from Bonnie's hand and going for her neck. A few seconds later he pulled away, his newly acquired fangs dripping with blood. He looked next to Bonnie and picked up the stake she had dropped and sped out of the tomb._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note<strong>

**I do not ship Stelena or Forwood. Delena and Klaroline all the way, just so you know.**

**Well, I have to say it took me awhile to start this chapter knowing that the actual episode had me bawling for like half an hour after it was over and just generally depressed for the next few days. I'm so sad, I'm gonna miss good Ric now that Evilaric is gonna take over. Hopefully we will see good Ric in the near future. Anyway, I hope you like the chapter and please, please review because I love to get feedback from you guys. Also I would just like to say that it is mine and Fanfiction's one year anniversary, it's been a difficult year with many ups and downs but we made it so make sure to leave us an anniversary present ( Aka a review) on your way out. Until next time…**

**Audrey;D**


	22. Before Sunset

**Chapter Twenty-Two- Before Sunset**

_Damon was walking out of the tomb to see Bonnie walking towards him._

" _What are you doing here?" Damon asked her but she merely kept on walking right past him, " Hey, Bonnie. What are you sleep walking or something?"_

_Bonnie turned back to him and glared at Damon giving him a aneurism before walking into the tomb. She looked down at Ric's unconscious form then brought out the stake that had killed both him and Ester and stabbed her hand with it. Bonnie gasped as blood started to pool in her hand but ,Instead of breaking out of the weird trance she was in, brought her bleeding hand to Ric's mouth. Ric began to drink deeply, quickly pulling his mouth away from Bonnie's hand and going for her neck. A few seconds latter he pulled away, his newly acquired fangs dripping with blood. He looked next to Bonnie and picked up the stake she had dropped and sped out of the tomb._

* * *

><p>I sat up in bed, my head pounding from the all the bourbon I had had last night, shocked at what I had just seen. I looked around and saw that sun was filtering through my window figuring that I must have fallen asleep sometime during the night. I grabbed some aspirin from the drawer in my bedside table and took some before picking up my phone and trying to call Damon but he didn't answer. I texted him and told him to come over as soon as possible before getting out of bed and grabbing some clothes and heading into the bathroom to take a shower. After was dressed I headed out of my room only to be met by the strong smell of wet paint. I followed the smell to Ric's room where Elena and Jeremy were painting the walls.<p>

" What are you guys doing?" I asked as I walked inside

" Elena decided that we should paint this room during the middle of the night." Jer informed me

" And you're going darker." I said

" It was the only color we had." Elena told me

" I guess that's what happens when you decide to paint your dead guardians room in the middle of the night." I said distantly, " Well, I'm gonna grab some coffee and I'll be back to help you later."

I didn't wait for a reply before I turned around and headed downstairs. I got half way down the stairs when I almost ran into Stefan.

" Hey." Stefan greeted me gently

" Hi Stefan." I said, " Look, we have a huge problem."

" What do you mean?" Stefan asked, confused

I opened my mouth to reply but before I could say anything the doorbell rang. I went to answer the door but Stefan beat me to it, he opened the door to reveal Damon holding onto Bonnie, the latter of which bleeding from her neck.

" We've got a problem." Damon said bluntly

" Told you." I said, turning back to Stefan

* * *

><p>" What do you mean he turned?" Stefan asked after the four of us had moved to the kitchen and explained everything, " I thought you were standing guard, Damon."<p>

" Don't blame Damon, Stefan." I said, " Bonnie gave him an aneurism and knocked him out cold."

" Exactly, you can blame Bonnie the blood bank." Damon added, " She fed him."

" I had no idea what was happening." Bonnie defended herself, " The witches led me there, they wanted him to feed so he would turn."

" So where's the stake now?" Stefan asked

"You mean the white oak one? The one that can kill an Original and wipe out an entire line of vampires? We don't know." Damon said looking at Bonnie

" If you were so upset with me then why did you feed me your blood to save my life?" Bonnie shot at him

" Because I do stupid things, Bonnie." Damon retorted, " Things like let my friend with dignity when I should have just killed him."

" I can't do this right now." I said, more to myself, before making my way out of the kitchen and going to help Elena and Jeremy I could get to the stairs Damon was blocking my path.

" What Damon?" I asked him

" How are you doing?" he asked me softly

" Fine." I said, looking down at my feet

Damon cupped my face with his hand and started to stroke my cheek with his thumb, making me look up at him.

" Wanna try that again?" he questioned

" I'll be fine." I assured him, " I just need to keep myself busy, stop thinking about Ric, and I'll be fine."

" I can think of a few ways to keep you busy." Damon said suggestively

" I'm sure you can." I said, a slight smile making its way onto my face, " But I already told Jeremy and Elena I would help them paint Ric's room. So if you need me I'll be upstairs."

I tried to walk around Damon and go up the stairs but he grabbed me by the arm and pulled me to him, leaving no space between us. Damon's lips were on mine in an instant and I could already feel the stress of our Ric predicament fading away. Our lips moved in sync for a few minutes before I heard someone coming down the stairs but at the moment I really didn't care.

" Seriously?" I heard Jeremy say angrily and Damon and I moved apart slightly, " Can I go anywhere without seeing you two going at it?"

" Probably not." Damon said with a smirk, causing Jeremy to roll his eyes before walking past us.

" Well that was a lot less awkward then the first time he walked in on us." I smiled, " Well as super hot and distracting that was I have painting to do."

Damon groaned in protest as I walked past him and up the stairs. I made it all the way up the stairs before my phone started to ring. I took it out of my pocket and looked at the caller ID and felt a chill go through me. Alaric. I looked around to make sure no one was looking before going into my room and answering.

" What do you want?" I asked

" I see you already know about me. That certainly saves some explaining so I can get right to the point. I'm at the school and I have Aurora and if you want to keep her alive I need you to get into your car and come down here right away. If you tell anyone where you are going, I will kill her." Ric told me before hanging up

* * *

><p>I walked down the empty hallways to Ric's classroom. When I walked inside I saw Ric lounging in his chair while Aurora was gagged and her hands were staked into the table with pencils.<p>

" Aurora." I said before turning to Ric, " Let her go Alaric."

" Free her yourself." he said, waving his hand toward Aurora

I stared at him cautiously for a moment before walking over to Aurora. She was whimpering and I tried to soothe her as i began to remove the first pencil. It was almost out when Ric came up an slammed in back down into Aurora's hand, causing her to scream out in pain.

" You said that you would let her go." I yelled, backing away from Ric

" How many times do I have to tell you, Audrey." Ric said, walking up to me, " Stop trusting vampires."

* * *

><p>I sat down in a desk next to Aurora, unable to do anything but watch as Ric removed her gag and dipped it in vervain before walking back of to Aurora.<p>

" No more, please no more." Aurora begged as he stepped behind her

" Alaric stop." I said standing up

" Sit down." Ric snapped before pushing me back into the desk, " This keeps the vervain in her system." Ric explained as he replaced the gad and I flinched at the sound of Aurora's sizzling flesh, " It's like inhaling razor blades with every breathe."

" Why are you doing this?" I asked him as he picked up a stake from his desk

" To make it easier for you when you put her out of her misery." Ric told me

" What? " I said in shock, " No!"

" Isn't this what you wanted, Audrey?" Ric questioned, holding the stake towards me, " For me to teach you how to kill a vampire. Well, here's a vampire, Audrey. Kill her."

" This isn't what I wanted." I spat

" Of course it is. All those hours you spent training, getting stronger. You could be a hunter, Audrey." Ric told me

* * *

><p>" Why are you doing this?" I repeated as Ric paced back and forth across his room<p>

" Because you need me." he replied, " Because you're an eighteen year old girl without parents or guidance or any sense of right or wrong anymore."

" Look at you." I told him, " How is this right?"

" She's a murderer." Ric said, gesturing to Aurora, " She told me she killed someone and liked it. Now how is that right? Listen, Audrey, if you don't side with the humans," Ric looked over at Aurora once more, " then you're just as bad as them. Now kill her, or I'll do it for you and I'll make it hurt."

Ric grabbed me by the arm and pulled me out of my chair. He moved me in front of Aurora before putting the stake in the hand. I looked down a Aurora for a second before turning around and attempting to stake Ric but he easily grabbed my hand.

" I thought I taught you better than that." Ric sneered

" You did." I told him before grabbing the glass of vervain and smashing it across his face.

Ric screamed in pain and let go of me. I ran over to Aurora and removed her gag and both of the pencils quickly.

" Get help." I told her before she ran out of the room

I ran after her but was stopped when Ric sped in front of me. He threw me into some lockers before grabbing me by the throat, making it difficult to breathe.

" I should kill you." Ric said as I grabbed his arm, trying to move it from my throat, " I should gut you like Brian Walters, Bill Forbes, and all the other cowards I plan on ripping apart. You're he worst defender of them all, Audrey. You don't deserve to live."

" So then why am I still alive?" I asked him, " There is obviously no humanity left in you so what's stopping you Alaric? If you want me dead then kill me. Do it! Kill me!"

Ric instantly let go of me and backed away. Within seconds Damon and Stefan were holding onto Ric. I ran into the home economics room and grabbed a knife, returning into time to see Ric about to stake Klaus in the heart.

" Stop!" I yelled, catching Ric's attention, holding the knife to my throat " Let him go or I'll kill myself."

" Put it down, Audrey." Ric said, not moving an inch

" Why? Because you still need me alive?" I began, " There's a reason Ester used me to make you isn't there? She didn't want you to be a immortal so she tied your life to a human one, mine. That way you only have one life span to kill all vampires then you'll be gone. So when I die you die too. That's it, it has to be."

" You're wrong." Ric said unconvincingly

" Am I?" I countered, bringing the knife across my throat, drawing blood

" Stop!" Ric shouted, moving away from Klaus " Stop, stop, stop."

Klaus took this opportunity to push down Ric and come at me, after that, everything went black.

* * *

><p>As I came to and felt something being put into my arm. I gasped and looked over to see a blond nurse putting a needle into my arm.<p>

" Be careful, moving only makes it hurt more." she told me

" What are you doing?" I asked her after looking down to see I was tied to a chair

" Draining you of all your blood." Klaus told me from his spot across the room.

I tried to move as the blood was beginning to drain out of me but the ropes holding me down were to strong. I heard someone walk in and looked up to see Tyler holding a box of stuff.

" Audrey?" Tyler said in shock

" Tyler, help me." I said as I continued to try and get free

Tyler set down the box of stuff and started towards me.

" He can't." Klaus said in a bored tone, making Tyler stop in his tracks, " He needs to go fetch me more empty blood bags. About three liters worth please, Tyler."

" Tyler, please." I begged, " Get Damon, please."

" No Tyler, get the bags." Klaus ordered

Tyler seemed to be stuck between a rock and a hard place at the moment, unsure of what he should do. I continued to look at him, hoping he would choose to help me but not expecting him to get far if he did. Tyler looked over at Klaus quickly before running to me, only to be stopped by Klaus.

" Forget the girl and get the bags." Klaus told Tyler, " Now."

Tyler locked eyes with me for a moment before turning and walking out of the house. I moved against the ropes as Klaus began to walk around me.

" So that's it?" I asked Klaus when he stopped behind me, " You're just gonna bleed me dry?"

" Yes." Klaus replied, " But don't worry, it'll be completely painless. As the last drop is drawn, you'll simply fall asleep."

* * *

><p>After I while the blond nurse returned to replace the filled blood bags with new ones and I was starting to get light headed from the blood loss.<p>

" What about your hybrids?" I asked Klaus, weakly, " You'll need more than this to make your army."

Klaus looked down at me and as the nurse walked past him he grabbed one of the blood bags from her.

" These last few liters will have to suffice." Klaus told me, examining the blood bag, " You see, by attempting to kill us, my mother strengthened the bond between my siblings and I. I don't need hybrids, I have my family."

" If you believed that, then why take my blood at all." I said as breathing became increasingly more difficult, " You want a back up family. You know that your siblings will never trust you again."

Klaus sped in front of me, leaning down so our faces were only inches apart.

" You do know that you and Damon would have never worked out, don't you?" Klaus asked, changing the subject, " You would have grown old and died or maybe he would have turned you." The conversation had gone in a completely different direction. I had thought about this a few times only to come up blank on what I wanted. I loved Damon with all my heart but could I really be a vampire? I wasn't sure, " Consider this a favor. Once your dead, you won't have to choose. But just between us girls, what would you have done?"

" Rot in h*ll." I said, glaring at Klaus

" You're welcome." Klaus said before standing up , " Sweet dreams, Audrey. It's been fun."

I watched Klaus as he smiled and walked out of the room. As soon as he was gone I went back to trying to get free but after a few minutes I gave up, to exhausted to continue. I looked up and saw Tyler walk into the room. He made his way over to me and undid the ropes holding me to the chair.

" What are you doing?" I whispered but he shushed me and removed the needles from my arms, " Tyler."

Tyler looked behind him to see Klaus standing there and he slowly stood up to face him.

" So much for that sire bond." Klaus said

" I'm not you little b*tch anymore." Tyler snapped, standing next to me

Klaus smirked and made his way over to stand in front of Tyler .

" How did you break the sire bond?" Klaus asked him

" By breaking every bone in my body a hundred times for the girl I love." Tyler replied

" That's impossible." Klaus told him

" Is it?" Tyler asked, " Or maybe real love is stronger than fake loyalty. But what would you know about that."

" You know you should be thanking me." Klaus said, " I gave you a gift, I took away your misery."

" You didn't give a crap about me!" Tyler shouted at him, " You just didn't want to be alone."

Tyler turned back towards me and picked me up bridal style from the chair. Before Tyler could even take a step Klaus pushed me out of his arms and I hit my head on the stair, momentarily knocking me out.

* * *

><p>I sat up slowly when I woke up, holding my throbbing head in my hand. I felt someone's hand on my shoulder and looked to see Damon.<p>

" Are you okay?" he asked me and I nodded, " Come on, I've got you."

Damon helped me to my feet and I looked over to see Stefan and Tyler holding Klaus as he turned gray and veiny before dropping to the floor.

" You should get her home before the sunsets." Stefan said, facing Damon and I

I felt Damon's arm wrap around my waist as I looked down at Klaus' body one more time. I looked back at Damon as he began to lead me out of Klaus's mansion.

* * *

><p>I got out of my car when Damon, Stefan, and I returned to my house. Other then my pounding head and the fact that I was slightly light headed I felt fine. I heard Damon and Stefan get out of the car before they started walking behind me.<p>

" You two are really gonna walk me to all the way to the door , aren't you?"

" You lost a lot of blood today." Stefan reminded me

" Yeah but I told you, I feel fine." I said, " I just have a little headache."

" Yeah, but the suns about to go down and Ric will be able to terrorize the streets any minute." Damon told me

" But he can't hurt me." I said as we made our way onto the porch, " It's you two that we should be worrying about."

" He won't be able to follow us." Stefan assured me as I opened the door

I looked back at Damon and Stefan. Stefan turned around and started towards the car but when he noticed Damon hadn't moved he stopped and turned towards us again.

" Damon." Stefan said

" I'll be right there, brother." Damon told Stefan

Stefan looked back at me before turning and heading back to the car.

" You sure you're gonna be okay?" Damon asked

" I'll be okay, Damon." I told him with a small smile, " I'll stay indoors and won't invite anyone inside."

" Good, I'll call you from the road after we dump Klaus's body in the Atlantic." Damon said

I looked up at Damon and gave him a quick kiss before pulling away.

" Be careful." I told him

Damon nodded and I watched as he turned and headed to the car. I closed the door when I saw him sit inside and made my way into the kitchen. When I walked in I saw Tyler, Caroline, Aurora, Jace, Matt, Elena, and Jeremy all standing around Pizza boxes and alcohol.

" What are you guys doing here?" I asked

" Welcome to our victory party!" Caroline said

" What victory? We failed, Alaric is still out there." I reminded them

" We know." Bonnie said, " But we've been trying to get rid of Klaus forever."

" So, Caroline convinced us to enjoy it." Aurora added

" I gotta say, I'm a little ticked none of you let me help you take down Original brother number two." Matt said

" Yeah, he would have taken you right down to the hospital , bro." Tyler told him as Care poured us all shots

" Please, I'm more stealth than that." Matt said, " I'm like a ninja."

" Yeah, right." Jace scoffed

" Here." Care said, handing me a shot, " After the day you've had, you need it."

" Thanks." I said

" Here, give me your hand." Tyler said, pouring salt on the back of my hand

" Thank you for standing up to Klaus like that." I thanked Tyler

" Lets just say it's been a long time coming." Tyler replied

" Way to long." Care said, wrapping an arm around Tyler, " Alright, lets drink."

" I not condone this by the way." I said to Jer

" We survived Klaus alright, make an exception." Jeremy told me, " You can go back to being responsible tomorrow."

" Okay." I smiled

" Hey wait." Tyler said, " Do you hear that?"

Everyone listened but didn't hear anything.

" That is the sound of a Klaus free life." Tyler finished and we all laughed

" To a Klaus free life." I cheered, holding up my shot, " And to all of you, my family."

" Cheers." Everyone said before we downed our shots

* * *

><p>After everyone had gone home I walked upstairs to Ric's room were Jer was painting.<p>

" Hey, is everyone gone?" Jeremy asked

" Yep." I replied, " It's just us."

" Where's Elena?"

" She went to her room already." I told him

" I hate this room." Jer said suddenly

" Me too." I agreed, " Miranda, Grayson, and my mom were right. Alaric should just kill all the vampires and put an end to all of this. But then that means Caroline and Aurora die, and Bonnie loses her mom, the mayor will lose her son, Elena will lose Stefan, and I would lose Damon. So if it makes me the bad guy to want to keep all those people alive, then fine, I'll be the bad guy."

" You forget that Alaric never wanted any of this." Jer said, " Once he carries out his plans what if he doesn't want to live anymore, and he kills his human connection to end his life? That would mean that I would lose you, I'm not gonna let that happen." we looked at each other for a while before Jer continued, " I'm gonna shower and get some sleep. Good night, Audrey."

" Goodnight." I said as Jer walked out of the room

I sighed before picking up a paint brush and beginning to paint the trim around one of the windows. I bent down to get more paint when I felt I searing pain in my head. I hissed in pain and grabbed my head, standing up straight. Suddenly I felt really light headed and fell to the ground as my vision went dark.

* * *

><p><strong>Authors Note<strong>

_**Well, that was a rather sucky way to end an episode, but I digress. So review and tell my what you guys thought and remember, we're only four reviews away from my 100 review goal, I've done my part so make sure to do your part. I would also live it if, while you are reviewing, would answer some questions for me. Will we see Klaus in the next and last episode of the season or will we have to wait until next season ( or possible even longer) for his epic return? Who are you most looking forward to seeing in the season finale? ( Personally for me I'm stuck between Elijah and Katherine) And WTF happened to Elena? Did her dramatic fall have anything to do to getting her head bashed against the floor in Klaus' mansion or was it way more supernatural then that? Review, answer these random questions, and tell me what you think. Until next week when I finish off Love is so Poisonous with a bang…**_

_**Audrey;D **_


	23. The Departed

_**Authors Note # 1**_

_**I just wanted to put in a plug for my bestie AuroraRose1001, she has a Vampire Diaries crackfic up called Just Relax. Go check it out.**_

_**Thank you so much to grapejuice101, SomebodyWhoCares, KittyKat, Elena, and Frenchy Girl, who sent us over the edge to 101 reviews.**_

_**I do not own the Vampire Diaries, only Audrey and anyone or anything else you don't see on the show.**_

**Chapter Twenty-Three- The Departed **

_I woke up to the sound of So What by Pink playing on my alarm clock. I turned up the music so it was blaring as I got out of bed and got ready. I walked down the hall after I had gotten dressed and joined Elena, who was dressed in her cheerleading outfit, before walking downstairs and into the kitchen._

" _Hey." Jenna greeted us, standing behind the counter which was full of food and a pot of coffee_

" _Good morning." I said with a smile, sitting on a empty space on the counter_

" _Jeremy locked himself in the bathroom again." Elena told Jenna and I angrily, " Does he think we don't know what he's doing in there?"_

" _He's fourteen." Jenna stated simply, " They don't think."_

_Elena grabbed for the coffee but Jenna hit her hand away._

" _Hey, you'll get me in trouble." Jenna told her and then looked at me, " Both of you will."_

_I jumped off the counter as I heard Miranda walking towards the kitchen._

" _Good morning." Miranda said as she walked in_

" _Morning mom." Elena greeted her and received a kiss on the cheek_

"_Morning Miranda." I smiled before hugging her_

" _Where are your parents?" Miranda asked after we pulled apart_

" _Still unpacking because apparently they need to bring all of their things for a one week stay." I said, rolling my eyes and making Jenna, Elena, and Miranda laugh._

I opened my eyes and looked around to see that I was in a hospital room by myself. I was hooked up to a few machines and an IV but I was too tired to think much about it before I fell asleep again.

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

" She's gonna be fine." Meredith told Jeremy and Elena as they stood outside of Audrey's hospital room, " She got a little banged up today, hit her head, but it was just a slight concussion. Nothing to worry about."

" But she collapsed, there was blood." Elena resisted

" Honestly, Elena, she's okay." Meredith assured her, " She's just, she's been through a lot. Is there anyone either of you would like to call?"

* * *

><p>Elena had told Jeremy to call Damon before she headed into the room with Audrey. Jeremy quickly filled both Damon and Stefan in on everything as he watched Audrey, who was still unconscious, and Elena who was sitting in an armchair next to her.<p>

" You did what?" Damon yelled over the phone at Jeremy as he and Stefan drove down the highway

" We took her to the hospital." Jeremy repeated, " When you fine your cousin unconscious you call 911."

" Not when you have parade of vampires at your disposal." Damon told him, clearly aggravated

" Every remaining Original is going to want Audrey dead to stop Alaric." Stefan added, " She's a sitting duck in there."

" Well, Meredith wants to keep her here for observations." Jeremy told the brothers

" Jeremy, get Audrey home." Damon ordered him, " We're on our way."

Damon hung up and then turned to Stefan and said, " Have I told you lately how much I appreciate you not being the dumbest brother on Earth?"

" You know one of us needs to keep moving, right?" Stefan told him, " If Klaus really is the sire of our bloodline we need to keep his body hidden before Alaric finds him, kills him, and we all end up dead."

" Our life is one big preverbal coin toss." Damon said and Stefan nodded in agreement

* * *

><p>Meredith walked into her office after she was done talking to Jeremy and Elena to find Alaric lounging in her chair.<p>

" Hello Meredith." Alaric greeted her

" What are you doing here?" Meredith asked him, uncomfortable with being alone with him

" I'm Audrey's guardian, I thought it was strange I didn't get a phone call." Alaric told her, faking offense at this

" How did you find out?" Meredith continued with her questioning

" Oh, I have eyes and ears everywhere now." Alaric explained to the doctor, " It's funny, the people of this town are actually good at there jobs when you allow them to be. Speaking of, you are a little too good at your job." Ric stood up and opened the mini fridge next to her desk and pulled out a few vials of vampire blood.

" But that's because you cheat. So I found your stash of vampire blood." Ric said before opening the vials and beginning to pour them on Meredith's desk over top a stack of papers.

" No, stop it." Meredith said, " Don't do that. Stop it!"

" The council will be in touch with the medical board to have your license suspended." Ric informed her when the last drop of blood had been poured onto Meredith's desk, " Mayor Lockwood and Sheriff Forbes are being relieved of their duties. I'm getting this town back under control. And you will be releasing Audrey to my custody." Ric grabbed the folder from Meredith's hand and signed the release forms before walking out of her office.

Alaric continued down the hall until he got to Audrey's room. He opened the door but was infuriated when no one was inside.

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

Matt, Tyler, Aurora, Elena, and Caroline brought me home from the hospital since Jeremy had gone to the Grill to grab some food for all of us.

" Couch." Aurora ordered me, holding onto my arm and steering me in the direction of the front room, Elena right behind us

" I'm fine, I just… I want something to eat first." I told her

" We're on it as soon as we make sure no one's lurking in the closets." Tyler said as he, Matt, and Caroline headed to the stairs to look around.

" Alright, couch." Aurora repeated, setting me down on the couch, ignoring my protests completely.

" I told you I'm fine." I groaned

" Doctor says rest, you rest." Elena said, picking up a few blankets and covering me with them.

" Now, what can I get you?" Aurora asked, sitting down at the end of the couch while Elena took and empty chair next to me, " Do you want some tea? Maybe some Vodka? Both will help you sleep." I just looked up at her, smiling and she sighed before continuing, " I know, I'm being smothering, it's what I do."

" No, its nice." I told her before turning to Elena, " Thank you guys."

" I'm thinking maybe tea with Vodka." Elena suggested before her and Aurora got up and headed into the kitchen.

* * *

><p>" <em>So, as I psychically predicted, flare jeans are making a comeback." Bonnie said as I walked up to her, Elena and Matt <em>

" _That doesn't mean you're psychic, Bonnie." I told her, and her face lit up when she saw me, " It means you watch to much Top Model."_

" _Audrey!" Bonnie exclaimed before running up to me and attacking me with a hug, " What are you doing here?"_

" _Well, me, my parents, and Jenna are visiting for a week." I told her before turning to Matt, " Matty, I'm hurt, I don't get a hug? I mean, it's not like we didn't grow up together or anything._

_Matt smiled before removing his hand from Elena's and giving me a quick hug, " I missed you Audrey."_

" _Missed you too, Matty." I replied before he rejoined Elena_

" _Anyway, say what you want but I have a bad feeling about the bonfire tonight, which you are coming to right?" Bonnie asked me, hope coloring her tone_

" _We can't." Elena said sadly_

" _It's family night." I explained to Matt and Bonnie with fake enthusiasm _

" _You guys have to go. See if you can sneak out." Matt said before leaning down and giving Elena a kiss, " Gotta see coach Tanner, love you." Matt then turned and headed towards the football field_

" _You didn't say it back." Bonnie said after Matt had left_

" _What?" Elena asked, playing dumb_

" _You know what, you can't string him along, Elena." I told him, " If you're not into it anymore, just tell him."_

I woke up and saw Matt sitting in a chair across from me and Elena sitting at the end of the couch. I looked around but it seemed that everyone else had left.

" Where is everyone?" I asked them

" Tyler and Caroline got a call from their moms." Matt told me

" And Aurora went to find Jeremy." Elena added, " What were you dreaming about?"

" My visit back in sophomore year." I said, sitting up

" Seems like forever ago." Matt sighed

" Probably because it was." I smiled, then I heard the door opened and turn to see Stefan walking into the living room.

"Audrey, are you okay?" Stefan asked me, worry evident on his face

" I'm fine." I replied, " Where's Damon?"

" He had to get rid of Klaus's body." Stefan explained and I couldn't help but feel a little upset over the fact that Damon choose getting rid of Klaus over me

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

" Thanks Ben, tell the kitchen I appreciate them staying open for me." Jeremy said, taking the bag of food that was set in front of him.

He heard the sound of two classes being put down next to him and turned to see Alaric with one of the beer bottles standing next to him.

" We need to talk."

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

" I'm being over coddled." I complained from my spot on the couch, " I feel completely fine."

" You're on house arrest." Stefan told me while he was making a salad, " You're supposed to feel coddled

" Wouldn't it be smarter if we just got you the h*ll out of town?" Matt asked as he and Elena set the table

" And do what?" I asked him, " Go on the run for the rest of my life? No thank you." I moved the blankets from on top of me and stood up, " And I'm not an invalid, I'm done with the couch."

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Matt, Elena, and Stefan watched as Audrey walked out of the room but decided not to follow her, realizing she just needed a moment to herself.

" So you're just gonna let her call the shots?" Matt asked, turning to face Stefan

"I'm letting her make her own decisions." Stefan corrected Matt

" Even if they're wrong?" Matt questioned

" Nothing wrong with free will, Matt." Stefan told him, " Trust me, you don't realize that until you lose it."

" I guess it's a good thing Damon didn't come back then." Elena piped up, " Because we all know he would have dragged her out of Mystic Falls as long as she would be safe in the end. He would completely ignore what she wanted ."

" Stefan." Audrey said from the front door

The three turned toward her and saw Elijah standing in front of Audrey.

" Elijah." Stefan said coolly

" Hello again."

* * *

><p>" I need you to tell me where they're keeping Klaus's body." Alaric said to Jeremy<p>

" I don't know and even if I did why would I tell you?"

" Audrey's association with vampires nearly got her killed again tonight, Jeremy." Alaric told Jeremy, " Does that even register with you?"

" Of course it does." Jeremy replied

" Well, she can't seem to cut them out of her life. But I can." Alaric said, " I can with your help, I can get rid of all of them. Find out where Klaus's body is being hidden, I'll kill him and all of his siblings, and when I die vampires will no longer exist."

" But the only way for you to die is if Audrey dies." Jeremy reminded him

"Then lock me up, have Bonnie put a desiccation spell on me like she did Klaus. Let Audrey live a long, healthy, human life. And when her life is over, mine will be too." Alaric said to Jeremy before pulling the White Oak stake from his jacket pocket, " This stake is the one weapon on Earth that can kill them. I'm gonna get Klaus either way Jeremy, be on the right side of this."

Alaric tucked the stake back in his pocket before grabbing his beer and heading to a booth at the back of the Grill. Jeremy stood there for a moment before grabbing his food and turning to head to the exit but running right into Aurora.

" Are you okay?" Aurora asked him

" Yeah, I'm fine." Jeremy said, still thinking about what Alaric had said

" Don't let him get in your head Jeremy, what he's doing isn't the right thing." Aurora told him since she had over heard the entire conversation, " Now come on, lets get back to the house." Aurora walked to the exit with Jeremy following in step behind her.

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

" All we need is to take that stake away from him. Once he's been disarmed and the weapon is in my possession my family will scatter to the ends of the Earth and Alaric will follow us." Elijah explained to Matt, Elena, Stefan, Damon, who had joined us via speaker phone, and I.

" And you'll just run." Stefan said, taking a seat between Elena and I

" We've done it before." Elijah told us, " Klaus and Rebekah spent the better part of a thousand years evading my father, what's another half century while Audrey is able to live out the rest of her natural life?"

" We finally stopped him Elijah." Elena said as I remained quiet, " After everything that he's done to us, we can't just let you bring him back."

" I give you my word Elena, I will not revive Klaus within yours, or even within your children's lifetimes," Elijah assured her, " Perhaps that will finally teach him some manners."

" Why should Audrey trust you?" Matt asked angrily, sitting on the other side of me. " All you've done is screw her over."

" And for that I am deeply ashamed." Elijah said, looking me in the eyes before turning to look at Matt again, " But know this, she could have been dead the instant I walked through that door tonight. So Audrey, I leave it to you to make the decision, whether to trust me or not."

" Not!" Damon finally spoke up, " Hello, did that concussion give you brain damage? His lunatic siblings will kill you the first chance they get!"

" Rebekah and Kol will honor the terms if you give Klaus's body to us Audrey will come to no harm." Elijah replied, " Do we have a deal?"

"No! No, no, no, no." Damon said, " Did I mention no?"

" Audrey, it's up to you." Stefan told me

" Oh, come on!" Damon complained

" Why do you want Klaus's body?" I asked Elijah

" He's my brother, we remain together." Elijah replied simply

"We have a deal."

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Caroline and Tyler walked into the Lockwood Mansion after they had both received frantic phone calls from their mothers.

" Mom?" Tyler said as he closed the door behind him

" In her." Mayor Lockwood said from her place next to Liz in the foyer.

" Mom." Caroline said upon seeing Liz, " What's going on?"

" Alaric outed us to the council." the Mayor explained, " He told them everything. The whole council knows what you are."

" He's got them looking for Klaus, then they're going to come looking for you." Liz added, " You can't be here when they do."

" What are you saying?" Tyler asked, unsure of what he was being told

" You both need to get out of town." Liz told them bluntly

" I pulled together some cash." Carol said, handing Caroline and Tyler each and envelope, " And Liz will get you some new identification, we'll get school records…"

" Whoa, wait a minute." Tyler interrupted his mother, " You want us to run?"

" We can't protect you anymore." Liz told the two teenagers

" Well we can't just pack up and leave." Caroline snapped

" If you stay, you're going to end up dead." Carol said, trying hard to fight back tears, " You don't have a choice."

* * *

><p>Matt and Jeremy sat outside on the porch taking about the conversation Jeremy had had with Alaric at the Grill.<p>

" So what are you going to do?" Matt asked him quietly so he wasn't overheard by the vampires inside the house.

" What I want to do is run into that house, grab Audrey, and get her out of here and away from all of this."

" So why don't we?" Matt queried

" Good luck getting her past all the vampires in there." Jeremy said, " Even if I wanted to help Alaric, I have no idea where Klaus's body is."

" I do." Matt told Jeremy

* * *

><p>Alaric was still sitting at the Grill when his phone started to buzz. He looked down at the caller ID to see that it was Jeremy calling him before picked up him phone.<p>

" Yes?" Alaric answered

" I know where Klaus's body is." Jeremy told him

" Good." Alaric said, " Tell me."

" Damon's on his way to bury him in the woods off route 12. I'll text you with the specifics." Jeremy explained

" Thank you Jeremy, you're doing the right thing for your cousin." Ric said

" I know." Jeremy said, looking at Audrey, then Aurora, Matt, Stefan, Elena, and Elijah before hanging up his phone and putting it back in his pocket," He bought it."

* * *

><p>" We can't just leave town." Caroline said, pacing back and forth across the Lockwood study<p>

" Yes we can." Tyler told her

"No, we can't." Caroline snapped, " Our friends need us."

" And our mothers need us to stay alive." Tyler countered, " Look, Stefan and Damon are going to do whatever it takes to protect themselves but this is our lives. So let me protect you."

" I will go anywhere with you, if we have to spend the rest of our lives running, I will run with you." Caroline said, " But first, I have to help our friends."

" I'll get stuff together and meet you at the cellar in two hours." Tyler said

" Deal." Caroline said before giving Tyler a kiss

" But we gotta travel light." Tyler told her, " So what do you need?"

" Just you." Care said before giving Tyler another kiss, " Maybe a curling iron. I have to tell Bonnie."

" I'll call Bonnie." Tyler assured her, " Okay? Two hours, don't you dare be late."

" Okay." Care said ,giving him one last kiss before walking out of the study

* * *

><p>" I'm not even halfway out of Virginia and Audrey sells our souls to the Originals." Damon said to Bonnie as the two walk out of the elevator in the storage building<p>

" It was her call." Bonnie told him

" You know what else is her call?" Damon questioned Bonnie, " Everything bad ever."

" Where's the body?" Bonnie asked Damon, obviously not amused by the fact that she had to be within ten miles of him, " As long as it's unspelled Alaric is one witch away from finding it."

" Hidden. I was going to use unit 666 but I figured that would be a little obvious so 1020." Damon told her, stopping in front of a closed storage locker, " Mini fridge, a couple bird cages, box of old playboys." Damon opened up the door and revealed a large coffin, " And one beef jerkyfied Original."

Bonnie rolled her eyes at Damon before walking over to Klaus's coffin and opening it. Damon and Bonnie stared down and Klaus's gray and unmoving body for a moment before Klaus opened his eyes and they both jumped slightly.

" Whoa." Damon said, " Creepy."

" I need a minute." Bonnie said, much to the annoyance of Damon

" Just jam the witch locator, or bat signal, or whatever and get on with it Bonnie." Damon told her

" Elena, Jeremy, and Audrey lost Jenna and Alaric because of him." Bonnie began, " Tyler's a hybrid, my mother's a vampire. Could you give me a minute to just appreciate the sight of him like this?"

Damon held his hands up in defeat before walking out and closing the door behind him. During all of this Bonnie continued to look down at Klaus.

" You should burn in h*ll." Bonnie spat at him, " But if you die, so do my friends. So does my mother. What am I supposed to do about that?"

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

" Stefan, make sure Alaric doesn't lay a hand on Jeremy or Elena." I told him as I paced back and forth across my room

" They will be fine." Stefan assured me, " Between all of us we'll have the strength and numbers to take disarm Alaric."

I sighed but continued my pacing, after a few seconds Stefan held me by the shoulders and looked me right in the eyes.

" What's wrong?" He asked me sincerely

"Lately I feel like every time someone walks out of this house, there is a chance they're not gonna make it back home."

" Well, I promise, I will do anything in my power to make sure that we all come back." Stefan said before heading to the door

" Stefan." I said causing him to turn around and look at me, " Thank you."

Stefan smiled once before turning around again and heading out of my room.

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Damon sat on an old couch in the storage building talking on the phone with Stefan while he waited for Rebekah to come and retrieve Klaus's body.

"Bonnie just left, Rebekah should be here soon to pick up the body." Damon informed Stefan

" I've got Caroline, Aurora, and Elijah in place." Stefan said, locking the door behind him as he left the Gilbert home, " Jeremy's gonna lead Alaric to us."

" You just had to let her make the choice, didn't you?" Damon said, shaking his head in disbelief

" What would you have done Damon?" Stefan asked, already having a pretty good idea of how his brother would respond

" Grabbed her, gagged her, threw her in a well, I don't know." Damon told him, " Anything except letting her trust Elijah."

" You know she'd just hate you for it." Stefan informed Damon

" Yeah, but she'd be alive and she'd hate me." Damon said, " Thus the eternal difference between you and me, brother."

" As soon as we get the stake, hand over the coffin, and get out, Alaric's got half the police looking for Klaus's car."

" Gotcha." Damon said before hearing the elevator signaling someone's arrival, " Gotta go, the Original sister's here."

Damon hung up before getting off the couch and heading down the hall to find Rebekah.

" It's about time sexy Bex." Damon said

Alaric quickly came up behind Damon and held him in a choke hold, making it impossible for Damon to escape.

" Where is Klaus?" Alaric asked him

" How did you find me?"

" Well, you'd be amazed at how competent law enforcement is when it's not corrupted by vampires." Ric said, " Now where is Klaus?"

" In a storage locker." Damon choked out, " There's only about a thousand of them. Have at it."

Alaric snapped Damon's neck when he sensed that he wasn't going to get anymore information from him. He dropped Damon's body to the ground before beginning to look through the storage lockers.

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

I sat on the window sill in my room, looking at the dark sky, when Matt walked in and handed me a mug of tea before sitting on my bed.

" Thank you." I said, taking a sip and finding it to be way to sweet

" Sorry." Matt apologized, " I over honeyed. I suck at tea."

" That's an understatement, Matty." I laughed

" So, you and Damon?" Matt asked

" Why are you bringing up that topic for small talk?" I asked, looking out the window again

" I just don't see what you see in him." Matt stated, " I would have never thought you two would get together, you're complete opposites. Your sweet, caring, and nice and Damon's…well, not."

" Well, they always say that opposites attract." I told him with a smile, " Plus, Damon's…different with me. He's still sarcastic and a jerk at times but, although you may not see it, he is sweet and caring. He's also saved my life on multiple occasions, you know."

" So do you feel like you owe him or something?" Matt questioned

" No, it's not that. When I'm with Damon, it just consumes me. I love him with all my heart, Matt." I smiled, taking another sip of tea, " He makes me happy, happier than I have been in a very long time."

After I finished the tea I felt my eyes began to droop and I quickly fell asleep.

* * *

><p>I opened my eyes and saw that I was in Matt's truck and we were driving down a disserted road.<p>

" What's going on?" I asked groggily

"It's the only way I was going to get you into this truck." Matt said, confusing me at first but I caught on quickly.

" The tea." I said, " You drugged me?"

" I'm sorry, Audrey, but you don't have any parents to tell you what's right or wrong." Matt told me, " You've got me, Elena, and Jeremy, and a bunch of vampires fighting a war you shouldn't be in the middle of."

" What the h*ll is going on Matt?" I asked

" I'm getting you out of town, Audrey." Matt explained, " It's the only way to keep you safe."

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Alaric opened storage locker after storage locker looking for Klaus's body but found nothing of the sort. As he was about to start his next row of lockers he heard the elevator bell ding.

" Damon." Rebekah called as she walked out of the elevator, " Damon where are you?"

Alaric grabbed the stake out of his pocket before starting to walk towards the sound of Rebekah's voice. Rebekah continued to look around the storage building looking for Damon but couldn't him anywhere.

" Damon this isn't funny." she whined as she walked down a dimly lit hallway

Ric continued to follow after her, walking quietly so he didn't alert her of his presence. Rebekah soon came across a hallway of lockers Alaric had opened and she was starting to get worried that Damon might not be the only one in there with her. Suddenly someone came from behind her and clamped a hand over her mouth before see had a chance to scream. Damon shushed her to make sure she did let Alaric know where they were.

Alaric looked up at the storage locker he was standing next. 1020. He looked down at the broken lock and opened it up, only to find a mostly empty locker. Rebekah and Damon had the coffin Klaus was in and almost made it to the car when Alaric blocked their path. He grabbed Rebekah, hit her head against the car and dropped her unconscious form to the ground. He turned to Damon and kicked him a few feet away from the coffin. Alaric turned to the coffin and opened the coffin and saw Klaus looking up at him.

" NO!" Damon and Rebekah yelled as Alaric brought out the white oak stake and drove it into Klaus's heart.

Damon stared in shock as he held back Rebekah while she sobbed for her brother when Klaus burst into flames. Alaric grabbed the stake and shut the lid of the coffin before turning back to Damon and Rebekah.

" You're next." He said to Rebekah

" Rebekah run." Damon told Rebekah

She did what he said and Damon ran at Alaric to give her some time to escape, Alaric easily threw Damon aside before following after Rebekah.

* * *

><p>A few minutes after Alaric had left Damon took out his phone and called Stefan to tell him the bad news.<p>

" Damon." Stefan answered

"Bad news, brother." Damon said, " Alaric staked Klaus. He's dead."

" I feel okay." Stefan informed Damon, " Do you feel anything?"

" No."

" It took Sage about an hour before she got sick."

" Yeah, or Klaus was lying about being the sire of our bloodline." Damon countered

" Well, if he wasn't lying…an hours not enough time to get you all the way back to Mystic Falls." Stefan said

" For us to have our epic goodbye, Stefan?" Damon joked

" Not us, brother." Stefan told him, " You and Audrey."

" Well, I guess you'll just have to say goodbye for both of us, won't you. Call me if you cough up a lung." Damon said before hanging up.

" Stefan." Jeremy said from behind Stefan, "Audrey's not at home. Matt and I, we're getting her out of town."

" It's gonna be fine." Stefan lied, " Klaus was lying, we're all going to be okay."

" What happened?" Elijah asked as he, Elena, Caroline, and Aurora walked up to them

" Stefan?" Caroline asked

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

" Yeah, I got it Jer." Matt said after Jeremy had called and informed him that Klaus was dead

" We have to go back." I said but Matt glanced at me before turning back to me, " Listen to me Matt, if Klaus is the one that turned their bloodline then they're all going to die. We have to go back Matt!"

" Audrey, Damon's not with them." Matt told me

" What?" I asked, hoping that I misheard him

" He's a hundred miles out of town." Matt continued, " I can keep driving to him, or I can turn around and head back to everyone else. It's your choice."

* * *

><p>I called Damon and he picked up after the second ring.<p>

" Let me guess, calling to see if the Grimm reaper has paid a visit?" Damon said

" How are you feeling?" I asked, ignoring his joke, " Are there any symptoms?"

" Not yet, but I'm sure we'll have a laugh when we find out Klaus is a big fat lair." Damon told me

" Yeah, I'm sure we will."

" Hey, where are you?" Damon asked the one question I was trying to avoid

" Matt's taking me home." I said as the tears threatened to spill over

" To Stefan." Damon said

" That's not it and you know it." I told him, " It's Tyler, and Caroline, and Aurora."

" I know, I get it." Damon stopped me, " Since I'm possibly a dead man can I ask you a question?"

" Of course." I said, my voice cracking as I tried my hardest not to cry

" If it was just down to him and me and you had to make a choice, who got the goodbye?" Damon questioned

" What kind of question is that, Damon?" I asked, unable to hold the tears back any longer and I felt them start flow down my cheeks " I would choose you, I would always choose you. You came into my life and I fell for you instantly."

" Well, if it is my last day at least I know someone choose me over Stefan." Damon said, making me smile

" It's such and easy choice, I don't see how everyone keeps making the wrong one by choosing Stefan." I told him, " I love you, Damon. You're going to be okay and I'll see you soon."

" I love you too, see you real soon. Goodbye, Audrey." Damon told me before hanging up

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

" I see you're still pissed." Damon said to Alaric after he put away his phone, " I take it Goldilocks gave you the slip."

Alaric didn't say anything as he ran up to Damon and punched him in the face.

* * *

><p>" Tyler." Caroline sobbed as she ran into the Lockwood Cellar but not finding him, " Tyler. Oh my God."<p>

" Caroline?" Tyler said as he walked in

" Oh my God!" Caroline exclaimed, running into Tyler's arms

" Hey." Tyler said, holding on to his crying girlfriend, " Sorry, I was just with Bonnie. What happened."

" Klaus died." Caroline said, pulling back, " He's dead."

" You're going to be fine, Caroline." Tyler assured her

" No, it's not me I'm worried about." she chocked out

" There's no point." Tyler told Caroline calmly, " I'm a lost cause, but you're strong, and you have a beautiful future ahead of you. And when you make it through this, just tell my mother that I left town like I was supposed to. Okay?"

Caroline nodded and Tyler kissed Caroline deeply before hugging her. Suddenly Tyler groaned in pain and pulled away when he started coughing.

" Do you feel anything?" Tyler asked Caroline

" No." Caroline replied through tears, " I feel fine."

" I need you to get out of here." Tyler told her, " I don't want you to watch me die."

" No, I'm not leaving." Caroline sobbed

Tyler doubled over in pain and Caroline was at his side in an instant.

" I'm staying." Care said

" No. You run." Tyler ordered her, " Or I'll make you run."

" I'm not leaving." Caroline repeated

Tyler nodded before he hunched over and the sound of bones breaking echoed in cellar as Tyler turned into a wolf. " Go!" Tyler growled and Caroline sped out of the cellar.

* * *

><p>As Matt and I were on our way back to Mystic Falls I got a call from Caroline telling me that Tyler was dying but she wasn't feeling any of the symptoms.<p>

" You too, Care." I said before hanging up

" What now?" Matt asked, seeing the fresh tears making their way down my cheek

" It's Tyler." I told him, " He um…he's…"

" D*mnit." Matt said hitting the seat, " D*mnit, d*mnit, d*mnit !"

" Matt, Matt, no." I said, trying to calm him down, "Stop it."

" This isn't how are lives were supposed to be, Audrey." Matt said, looking over at me

* * *

><p><strong>( Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Elijah stood in the woods when he heard someone standing behind him and he turned around to see Rebekah.

" He's gone, Elijah." Rebekah cried, " There was nothing I could do to stop it."

Elijah stepped forward and wrapped his arms around his baby sister.

"Tyler Lockwood is dead but the rest of them survived." Elijah said when they had pulled away, "You said that Niklaus turned their bloodline."

" I thought he did." Rebekah told him

" It wasn't me, it wasn't Kol."

" It wasn't me, Elijah." Rebekah said, " It was Niklaus, I'm sure of it."

" Then how are they still alive?"

* * *

><p>Bonnie walked into the Lockwood cellar that was silent, she looked around but saw no one.<p>

" I know you're in here." Bonnie said

Tyler walked out form the back of the cellar acting quiet strange as he made his way over to Bonnie.

" I must say, you really did that spell brilliantly." Tyler said, " I didn't think you had it in you."

" I did it to save my friends and my mother , Klaus." Bonnie snapped, " Not you."

" The spirits won't be happy with you." Tyler/Klaus told her

" The spirits don't tell me what t do anymore." Bonnie spat, " I'm done getting pushed around by all of you. I did it because I wanted to."

* * *

><p>Stefan looked down at his ringing phone found an unrecognizable number flashing across the screen.<p>

" Hello?" Stefan answered

" You're alive." Rebekah replied, " Congratulations.

" Rebekah."

" Elijah spoke to Audrey, her and Matt should be arriving back in town any moment now." Rebekah said

" Yeah, he told me that, he also said that you two would be long gone out of town by now." Stefan said as he walked to his car.

" That's the problem." Rebekah said, " Elijah says we have to run but the hunter will keep coming after us. I don't want to run anymore, Stefan. I spent my whole life running."

" What are you talking about?" Stefan questioned, " We had a deal."

" I'm sorry but Klaus is dead, there is no deal." Rebekah snapped, " If my brothers and I are going to survive we are going to have to get rid of Alaric and the only way to get rid of Alaric…"

"Rebekah no." Stefan begged

* * *

><p><strong>( Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

" I need to call Damon but my phone is dying." I said to Matt, looking down at my phone

" Here, use mine." Matt said, taking his eyes of the road to hand me his phone

" Thanks." I said before looking up at the road and seeing Rebekah standing in the middle of Wickery Bridge, " Matt, look out!"

Matt looked up but it was to late. He hit the brake and turned the wheel making us go right of the side of the bridge and into the water.

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V)<strong>

Damon groaned in pain as he fell to the floor, blood all over his face.

" You're not gonna fight back?" Alaric asked him

" You're kinda invincible Ric." Damon told him from the ground

" Don't call me that." Alaric said, kicking Damon in the side, " We're not friends."

" We were." Damon reminded him

" Well, our friendship was part of the problem. It's what kept me weak. It's also why it took so long for the real me to break through. And now I'm gonna break you." Ric said before punching Damon in the face again

_Damon was laying in the middle of the road waiting for his next meal to drive by so he could attach when he heard two girls taking in the distance. He turned to see a tanned skinned girl walking next to…Katherine?_

" _You're right, Audrey." Katherine said to the other girl_

_" Well, I'm always right but don't forget that you're mom is also right." Audrey said as the two girls walked closer to Damon_

" _Yeah, but I just can't bring myself to tell him." Katherine continued, " Not tonight."_

" _You have to tell him soon, you can't just keep leading him on." Audrey told her softly_

" _Katherine." Damon said as he appeared in front of the two girls._

_Audrey immediately got a freaky vibe from this guy and moved a little bit in front of her cousin. Just because he was a very gorgeous man didn't mean he wan'ts a psycho killer._

" _Um, no, I'm Elena." Elena said, " And this is Audrey."_

" _Oh, you…you just look…" Damon trailed off, " I'm sorry, you just really remind me of someone. I'm Damon."_

" _Not to be rude or anything, Damon, but it's kinda creepy that you're out here in the middle of nowhere." Audrey stated_

" _You're one to talk." Damon smirked, " You two are out here all by yourselves."_

" _Ah, ah, we used the buddy system." Audrey told him with a smile, finding it impossible to not to, " Plus, nothing bad ever happens in Mystic falls"_

" _I got into a fight with my boyfriend." Elena admitted after a moment of silence_

" _About what?" Damon asked curiously, " May I ask?"_

" _Life, future, he's got it all figured out." Elena explained_

" _And you don't want it?"_

" _Where teenage girls, Damon." Audrey said, " We don't know what we want."_

" _Well, that's not true." Damon told them, taking a few steps closer to them, finding himself more drawn to Audrey then the Katherine look alike, " You two want what everybody wants. Especially you Audrey"_

" _What? A mysterious stranger that has all the answers?" Audrey smiled_

" _Well, lets just say I've been around for a long time." Damon chuckled, " I've learned a few things."_

" _I'm sure you have." Audrey started, " So Damon, tell me, what is it that I want?"_

" _You want a love that consumes you." Damon began, taking the last few steps so he was now standing right in front of Audrey, " You want passion, and adventure, and even a little danger."_

" _So what do you want?" Audrey asked but before Damon could answer there was a car horn honking down the road._

_Elena and Audrey turned around and recognized the car as Miranda and Grayson's car._

" _That's my parents." Elena said to Damon before turning to Audrey, " You want a ride with us?"_

" _No, I'll get a ride back with Bonnie a little later." Audrey told her and they both turned back to Damon_

" _To answer you're earlier question, I want you to get everything you're looking for." Damon said, compelling Audrey and Elena, " But right now I want you to forget this happened. Can't have people knowing I'm back in town yet. Goodnight, Audrey."_

_The two girls broke out of their trance as Miranda and Grayson pulled up, forgetting their strange encounter with Damon Salvatore._

" Is that all you've got?" Damon spat as he came back from his memory

"Not quite." Alaric said, leaning down on one knee and trying to stake Damon

Damon grabbed Alaric's arm when the stake was inches above his heart. He snapped Alarics wrist before pushing Alaric away from him before getting to his feet and punching Alaric.

* * *

><p><strong>(Audrey's P.O.V)<strong>

I came back to consciousness only to find that I was still in Matt's truck but we were now submerged at the bottom of the lake. I turned to Matt and saw that he was unconscious still. I tried to shake him away but it did nothing.

_Grayson was fighting with his door, trying to get it open so he could save his family. Elena watched as her father tried to get free to no avail._

I continued on with my attempts at waking Matt when I came back to reality but nothing was working. 'Matt!' I tried calling but the water stopped any sound. I turned to the door but it wouldn't budge, I tried hitting out the window but it wasn't working.

_Grayson continued with his attempts at breaking out the window. ' Dad' Elena called but her father didn't hear her 'Dad'. This time Grayson turned around and took Elena's hand in hers. ' I love you' Elena mouthed before slipping into unconsciousness._

I saw Stefan swim up to the drivers side window as I continued trying to wake up Matt.

_Grayson saw Stefan next to his window and shook his head and pointed to the backseat, hoping that the stranger would save his daughter. Stefan moved to the back and saw Elena but immediately thought it was Katherine._

Stefan ripped off the door and tried to get over Matt to help me but I shook my head at him and pointed at Matt, telling him to save Matt before me. Stefan shook his head in disagreement before trying to get me again but I just shook my head and pointed at Matt again. He finally gave up trying arguing with me and took off Matt's seatbelt before pulling him out of the truck. I was getting light headed from the lack of oxygen as I watched them disappear. I looked at Stefan and Matt's retreating figures once more before everything went black.

* * *

><p><strong>(Third Person P.O.V) <strong>

Damon threw another punch at Alaric and hit the white oak stake out of his hand. Damon had him by the throat when Alaric started turning grey.

" What's happening?" Alaric asked

Damon looked at Alaric in shock, realizing that he was dying but that meant that Audrey was also dying.

" No, no, no." Damon said, " Ric, you are not dead. You are not dead."

* * *

><p>"Matt, where are you guys, you should have been back by now." Jeremy left Matt another message as he walked down the stairs.<p>

He put his phone in his pocket before turning to walk into the kitchen but he stopped when he saw Ric standing in his way.

"Jeremy." Alaric said

" Look, haven't you done enough?" Jeremy asked him, " How did you even get in here?"

" I don't know." Alaric told him honestly, " I just wanted to say goodbye and it kind of happened."

" Ric?" Jeremy inquired

" I just want you to know that I will always be here to look after you Jeremy." Alaric said, " That way you'll never be alone, okay? I promise."

" I don't understand." Jeremy told him, " Oh, my God. You're a ghost." Jeremy's eyes widened in realization as h finally figures it out, " But if you're dead, that means Audrey…"

* * *

><p>Audrey's body was on top of a metal table in the morgue with Stefan sitting across from her, looking down as her. The only thing he was thinking about was what this would do to his brother. After Katherine he was devastated but thing would throw him even farther over the edge, it would completely destroy Damon to lose Audrey.<p>

* * *

><p>" Where is she?" Damon asked Meredith as he stormed through the hospital, " Where is she?"<p>

" No, Damon, wait." Meredith said, grabbing Damon's arm, " There is something that you need to know. When Jeremy and Elena brought Audrey in here earlier tonight her injuries were worse than I let on. It wasn't a concussion it was a cerebral hemorrhage, bleeding on the brain."

" What are you saying?" Damon asked her

" They were so worried I didn't want to tell them." Meredith explained, " But I… I helped her. She needed my help."

" You what?" Damon asked her in disbelief

* * *

><p>Audrey is still in the morgue as she has been for a few hours when she suddenly opens her eyes and gasped loudly, walking up in transition to becoming a vampire.<p>

* * *

><p><em><strong>Authors Note<strong>_

_**Well, sadly this is the end of Love is so Poisonous I would like to thank everyone that has read, reviewed, favorited, and alerted this story. I hope that you guys take the short time to review on this last chapter ( Or PM, I'm flexible). If you do review please tell me your favorite parts of the story because i would love to know what you guys thought. Also if you have any ideas for titles for the fourth story in this series let me know ( Obviously it doesn't have to be right away, I have a few months until I start the next story). If you have any vampire diaries one shots or short fics you want me to write over the summer let me know. Again thank you and I hope to hear from you guys soon. Until next time…**_

_**Audrey;D**_


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